Department of Health and Social Care

Public Health: Finance

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's Local Authority circular, published on 21 December 2017, what assessment he has made of the effect on the NHS of the reduction in the public health grant settlement.

Steve Brine: The Government considers all the relevant factors in setting the level of the public health grant. Over the five years of the current spending review period we are making over £16 billion of grant funding available to local authorities in England exclusively for use on improving health. The grant is only a proportion of the total spending on public health: for example, NHS England commissions national screening and immunisation programmes with a budget of £1.2 billion in 2017/18, and many other interventions occur in National Health Service primary care settings. Public Health England monitors progress against the wide-ranging set of indicators published in the Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) which shows that, as a whole, for the majority of PHOF indicators the trends in England are either broadly constant or have improved in comparison with 2014.

Game

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the health benefits of eating wild game meat.

Steve Brine: No assessment on the health benefits of game meat has been made. Current advice on red and processed meat is for high consumers to reduce their intake to the population average intake equivalent to 70 grams a day. This is based on a review by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition in 2010, available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/339309/SACN_Iron_and_Health_Report.pdf

Cancer

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will respond to the recent Cancer Research UK report entitled Securing a Cancer Workforce For The Best Outcomes.

Steve Brine: Health Education England (HEE) published its first ever Cancer Workforce Plan in December 2017, which commits to the expansion of capacity and skills including:- 200 additional clinical endoscopists (in addition to 200 already committed to);- 300 reporting radiographers by 2021;- An ambition to increase improved working practices, attracting qualified people back to the National Health Service through domestic and international recruitment, more clinical radiologists, histopathologists, oncologists and radiographers by 2021;- The expansion of Clinical Nurse Specialists and develop common and consistent competencies for this role with a clear route into training; and- Sustainable growth beyond 2021 in key professions through continued investment in training places, with a greater focus on attracting and retaining students and improving the numbers of qualified professionals who go on to work in the NHS.HEE intends to follow the plan later this year with a longer-term strategy that looks at the workforce needs beyond 2021. This will include exploring sustainable growth beyond 2021 in key professions through continued investment in training places, with a greater focus on attracting and retaining students and improving the numbers of qualified professionals who go on to work in the NHS.

Incinerators: Health Hazards

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate the Chief Medical Officer has made of the cost to the NHS of emissions from waste incinerators.

Steve Brine: No estimate has been made of cost to the National Health Service of emissions from incinerators. Public Health England’s position is that well run and regulated modern municipal waste incinerators are not a significant risk to public health. This is because modern, well managed incinerators make only a small contribution to local concentrations of air pollutants. It is possible that such small additions could have an impact on health but such effects, if they exist, are likely to be very small and not detectable.

Incinerators: Health Hazards

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether Public Health England has made an assessment of the financial cost to society of emissions from waste incinerators.

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether Public Health England plays any role in assessing planning applications for waste incinerators.

Steve Brine: Public Health England (PHE) has not made an assessment of the financial cost to society of emissions from waste incinerators. PHE’s position is that well run and regulated modern municipal waste incinerators are not a significant risk to public health. Waste management facilities are regulated in England by the Environment Agency (EA) under the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010. When consulted, PHE provides an expert and independent opinion to the regulator (EA) on the potential impacts on human health of emissions arising from existing or proposed regulated facilities. PHE will comment on the applicants’ risk assessments and how they demonstrate the installation’s impacts on human health, and when requested, any additional modelling and assessments conducted by the EA, providing health advice that is clear, concise and based on best available evidence and expert judgement.

Alcoholic Drinks: Rehabilitation

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people accessed community alcohol detoxification as a treatment option in the last 12 months.

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many in-patient alcohol detoxifications there were in the last 12 months.

Steve Brine: This data is not held in the format requested.

Maternity Services: Fees and Charges

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of women who do not access maternity care because of concerns about NHS charging policies.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an (a) assessment of the effect on the health and wellbeing of vulnerable women and (b) equalities impact assessment of charging those women for maternity care.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the appropriateness of NHS trusts referring to debt collection agencies requests for payment by non-UK citizens of NHS maternity and other essential health care.

Stephen Hammond: The Department has recently reviewed the impact of changes introduced by the Amendment Regulations with a particular focus on the extent to which there are any unintended consequences for the most vulnerable. The outcomes of this review will be published in due course. The Department does not collect data on the number of women who do not access maternity care because of concerns about National Health Service charging policies. The national guidance is clear that NHS maternity treatment should always be considered as immediately necessary and provided to all patients regardless of whether or not they are entitled to receive it free of charge or there are doubts about whether they could pay if subsequently found to be chargeable under the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015, as amended. Providers of NHS care need to ensure that they take necessary and appropriate steps to recover the cost of providing treatment to those not entitled to NHS-funded care. National guidance recommends that providers of NHS care should consider employing the services of a debt recovery agency that specialises in the recovery of overseas debt except in relation to persons whom it is clear to the relevant body will be unable to pay.

Urinary Tract Infections

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much the NHS spent on unplanned admissions to hospital for patients with urinary tract infection in (a) 2015, (b) 2016 and (c) 2017.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much each clinical commissioning group spent on unplanned admissions to hospital for patients with urinary tract infection in (a) 2015, (b) 2016 and (c) 2017.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding clinical commissioning groups received to treat patients admitted to hospital as an unplanned admission with a urinary tract infection in (a) 2015, (b) 2016 and (c) 2017.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much the NHS spent on unplanned admissions to hospital for patients with blocked urinary catheters in (a) 2015, (b) 2016 and (c) 2017.

Steve Brine: The data is not collected in the format requested.The following table shows the estimated total cost for non-elective admissions for kidney or urinary tract infection: YearEstimated total cost (£ millions)2015-16£522.02016-17£530.82017-18£386.1 The costs for admissions to hospital for patients with blocked urinary catheters are not identifiable within reference costs.

Orkambi

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that cystic fibrosis sufferers have access to Orkambi.

Steve Brine: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and NHS England are in dialogue with Vertex Pharmaceuticals around access to their portfolio of cystic fibrosis medicines. It is critical that Vertex now re-engages fully with the NICE appraisal process and gives serious consideration to the portfolio deal offer that NHS England made at the end of July. This deal would provide immediate access for patients to all Vertex licensed medicines and future pipeline products once licensed and in advance of the individual NICE appraisals concluding.

Cancer

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will introduce a new 5-year survival target of 28 per cent by 2029 for (a) lung, (b) liver, (c) brain, (d) oesophageal, (e) pancreatic and (f) stomach cancer.

Steve Brine: The Prime Minister announced ambitions for the National Health Service Long Term Plan that will see 55,000 more people surviving cancer for five years in England each year from 2028 and three quarters of all cancers detected at an early stage by 2028. To achieve these ambitions, we will need to make signification progress on survival across all cancers, including lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic and stomach cancers.

Multiple Births

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer on 23 October to Question 179160 on Perinatal Mortality, whether the expert oversight group (a) noted that twins and triplets are at a higher risk than other populations of stillbirth and neonatal death and (b) made an assessment of the effect  of its decision not to include twin-specific recommendations in the Saving Babies' Lives Care Bundle on the NHS' ability to carry out its legal duty to have regard to reducing inequalities in outcomes from health services.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Saving Babies’ Lives Care Bundle is undergoing review by an oversight group consisting of nationally recognised experts, including representatives of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the British Maternal Fetal Medicine Society. The expert oversight group did note that twins and triplets are at a higher risk of stillbirth and neonatal death compared with other populations. The Maternity Transformation Programme is addressing safety in maternity services, including reducing inequalities in outcomes regarding twin and multiple births through other channels in addition to the Saving Babies’ Lives Care Bundle. The programme is supporting Local Maternity Systems to implement best practice care by working with the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, which has developed the Perinatal Mortality Review Tool to support standardised perinatal mortality reviews across National Health Service maternity and neonatal units in England, Scotland and Wales. All trusts in England are now using the tool to identify the factors associated with stillbirth and neonatal death, including within multiple pregnancies. Furthermore, NHS England encourages Local Maternity Systems to follow National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines, including CG129 on the management of antenatal care for twin and triplet pregnancies.

Neurology

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to whom the February 2018 Public Health England research and analysis on deaths associated with neurological conditions was circulated; how many NHS local commissioners have in response to the report stated that their area requires attention; and what steps he is taking to (a) support those who have responded and (b) encourage others to respond and tackle that issue.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the February 2018 Public Health England research and analysis on deaths associated with neurological conditions, what steps he is taking to (a) tackle the 39 per cent increase in deaths among people with neurological conditions and (b) support people with those conditions.

Steve Brine: Public Health England’s (PHE) Deaths Associated with Neurological Conditions report was targeted at those responsible for the provision of services for people with neurological conditions or end of life care. PHE disseminated the report to Directors of Public Health and Health and Wellbeing Boards, and promoted the report through the Department, NHS England, Neurological Alliance, Association of British Neurologists, Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy Action (SUDEP) Action, and Epilepsy Action. It is not possible to report how many National Health Social commissioners have raised neurology mortality as an area requiring attention in response to this report; however there are mechanisms for local areas to identify neurology as a priority area for development. In the NHS RightCare improvement cycle 2016/17, 62 of 205 clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) submitted neurology as a priority area for improvement. In 2018/19, 37 of 195 CCGs submitted delivery plans that include neurological problems as improvement projects. NHS England and PHE work with patient organisations such as the Neurological Alliance to raise awareness and support improvement in outcomes for people living with neurological conditions.

Ovarian Cancer

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to (a) improve public awareness of ovarian cancer and its symptoms, (b) increase early diagnosis rates and (c) increase access to treatment in specialist centres in (i) the London Borough of Lewisham, (ii) London and (iii) England.

Steve Brine: Public Health England (PHE) has run a number of ‘Be Clear on Cancer’ campaigns to help improve early detection of cancer including ovarian cancer. In 2014 PHE ran a pilot regional ovarian cancer campaign in the North West of England. In 2017, PHE ran a pilot campaign in the East and West Midlands which focussed on a range of abdominal symptoms, such as diarrhoea, bloating and discomfort that can be indicative of a number of cancers, including ovarian cancer.NHS England has invested over £200 million between 2017 and 2019, supporting Cancer Alliances to accelerate diagnosis and enhance quality of life.Lewisham Clinical Commissioning Group is engaged in work to improve early diagnosis and access to specialist centres for ovarian cancer.

NHS: Finance

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the November 2018 analysis from the Nuffield Trust on the effect on the cost of NHS services of leaving the EU without a deal, what contingency plans he has put in place to tackle the estimated £2.3 billion in additional annual costs.

Stephen Hammond: The Government is committed to ensuring leaving the European Union is a success for the health and social care sector as well as the United Kingdom as a whole. The Department continually assesses the implications of the UK leaving the EU, to help ensure the best outcome for the health and care sectors. This includes understanding the financial implications of the UK exiting the EU for the National Health Service and wider care system, and, where appropriate, mitigation planning for any risks. The Department is working with its partners across Government, arms-length bodies and industry to ensure that all relevant parties are prepared for exiting the EU, and the Secretary of State sends regular communication to frontline NHS organisations about EU Exit preparations. It is in everyone’s interests to secure a good deal for both sides. We expect to secure a good deal. However, it is the duty of a responsible government to contingency-plan for all potential EU exit scenarios, and that is exactly what we are doing. Our plans are well developed and have been designed to provide the flexibility to respond to all scenarios and ensure the smoothest exit in all outcomes. The quality and safety of patient care is paramount in our negotiations and preparedness plans.

NHS: Early Retirement and Sick Leave

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS staff (a) took early retirement and (b) were on long-term sick leave in the last three years for which figures are available; what the average length of long-term sick leave taken by NHS staff was in that period; and whether staff on long-term sick leave receive full or part pay.

Stephen Hammond: NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) workforce statistics for England. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups, but not staff working in primary care or in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities or other providers. The following table shows the number people who have stated that they have taken voluntary early retirement for the last three years and latest available data for 2018/19, headcount: 2015/162016/172017/1812018/19Voluntary early retirement3,2293,1313,000705Source: NHS Digital, National Health Service HCHS workforce statistics Note:1This only covers the first quarter of 2018/19 (1 April 2018 to 30 of June 2018). NHS Digital publishes data on the number of days lost to sickness absence. It does not publish data on number of staff on sick leave. NHS Digital publishes monthly data on sickness absence rates which cover sickness absence rate by region, staff group, organisation and organisation type. Information is not published on the length of sick-leave taken. NHS staff get up to six months full pay and then six months half pay when on sick leave subject to length of service as set out in terms and conditions of service.

Mental Health Services

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of hospitals provided 24-hour core 24 mental health teams for patients in England in (a) March and (b) October 2017.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The data is not held in the format requested.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England's publication, Next Steps on the Five Year Forward View, how many (a) NHS Trusts and (b) Care Commissioning Groups met the objective for over 90 percent  of emergency patients to be treated, admitted or transferred within for hours  (i) before and (ii) in September 2017.

Stephen Hammond: In September 2017, 86 out of 172 National Health Service trusts met the objective to treat, admit or discharge 90% of patients within four hours, while one NHS trust did not submit data for this period. The available data are not broken down by clinical commissioning group.In August 2017, 98 out of 173 NHS trusts treated, admitted or transferred over 90% of patients within four hours.Accident and emergency statistics are published monthly and can be found online at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/

Accident and Emergency Departments

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS hospitals provided comprehensive front-door clinical streaming in (a) March 2017 and (b) October 2017.

Stephen Hammond: Information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available confirms that there were 41 out of 138 acute National Health Service trusts with a type 1 accident and emergency (A&E) which had front-door clinical streaming in place in July 2017. In October 2017 this number had increased to 125 out of 137 acute NHS trusts with a type 1 A&E.

Hospitals

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS hospitals have adopted good practice to enable appropriate patient flow in (a) March 2017 and (b) October 2017.

Stephen Hammond: The data requested is not collected centrally.

Continuing Care: Finance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of assessments for continuing health care funding took place in a community setting in (a) March and (b) October 2017.

Caroline Dinenage: The information is not held in the format requested.

Palliative Care: Children

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of developing a competency framework for the provision of children’s palliative care.

Caroline Dinenage: No specific assessment has been made.

NHS Property and Estates Review

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government Response to the Naylor Review, published in January 2018, what the total value is of planned private finance investment in the NHS healthcare estate.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government Response to the Naylor Review, published in January 2018, what estimate he has made of the total value of public private partnerships in the next 10 years.

Stephen Hammond: The Government has considered its position on the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and its successor PF2, in light of experience since 2012, and found the model to be inflexible and overly complex. As such, PF2 will no longer be used for any future Government project. However, the Government remains committed to the use of public-private partnership where it delivers value for the taxpayer and fairly transfers risk to the private sector. The Government has committed to consider proposals from the National Health Service for a multi-year capital plan to support transformation, as part of the long-term plan the NHS is currently developing. Future years capital funding will be set as part of the Spending Review next year.

Social Services: Rural Areas

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on rural proofing the forthcoming social care green paper.

Caroline Dinenage: The Green Paper will bring forward proposals to ensure we have a social care system which is sustainable in the longer-term, where everyone knows that the care they receive will be to a high standard and will help them maintain their independence and well-being, regardless of whether they live in an urban or rural area.

Orphan Drugs

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will list the 10 orphan medicines assessed by NICE in the last five years through its single technology appraisal process as having the highest base case incremental cost effectiveness ratio (ICER); and what the (a) indication, (b) base case ICER and (c) recommendation from NICE was for each of those medicines; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Medical Treatments

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many technologies the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence highly specialised technology programme (a) is resourced to evaluate in 2018-19 and (b) has evaluated in 2018-19 to date.

Steve Brine: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is resourced to evaluate three technologies through its Highly Specialised Technologies (HST) programme in 2018/19. To date, NICE has published one HST topic in 2018/19 and has a further 11 topics in active development.

Health Services: Immigrants

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Health and Social Care Information Centre, the Home Office and his Department, published in November 2016, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of that MoU on (a) public health and (b) access to healthcare for immigrants.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Prior to signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in November 2016, the Department considered the evidence available to it on the possible impact of the MOU on public health and access to healthcare. Following the publication of the MOU the Department asked Public Health England to undertake a review into the impact of the MOU. The review is due to be published next year.

Health Services: Undocumented Migrants

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Health and Social Care Information Centre, the Home Office and his Department, published in November 2016, for what reasons that MoU was introduced; for what reasons that MoU has been withdrawn; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The previous Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Department, NHS Digital and the Home Office was introduced to formalise longstanding arrangements under which the Home Office could seek non-medical information from NHS Digital to support them to trace immigration offenders. The Government has since agreed to amend the MOU so that it can only be used to trace those individuals facing deportation action for serious criminal offending and, as now, to protect the welfare of an individual. As the previous MOU is no longer required, it has been withdrawn.

Restraint Techniques: Children and Young People

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 6 June 2018 to Question 148783 on Restraint Techniques: Children and Young People, when his Department plans to publish its response to its consultation on reducing the need for restraint and restrictive intervention.

Caroline Dinenage: Responses to the consultation on ‘Reducing the Need for Restraint and Restrictive Intervention’ have been analysed. The guidance is currently being updated in light of the responses and is due to be published soon.

Zholia Alemi

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what forms of redress are available to (a) patients and (b) family members of patients who were treated or assessed by Zholia Alemi who was employed as an NHS psychiatrist despite without qualifications for the role; and what steps his Department plans to take to contact those patients to provide guidance on those forms of redress.

Stephen Hammond: Redress for actions of National Health Service bodies may be obtained by making a complaint to the provider or the commissioner of the NHS service. A clinical negligence claim against the NHS may also be made. Patients or family members who have a concern about contact with Zholia Alemi or the care received by her have been advised to contact the local NHS service where they were treated.

Transplant Surgery

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the effect of the UK leaving the EU on the transportation of donated (a) stem cells, (b) blood and (c) organs to the UK from countries within the EU.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Secretary of State discusses a range of issues with Cabinet colleagues. Patient safety is paramount in the Government’s exit negotiations and maintaining continuity of supply of stem cells, blood and organs is a key part of ensuring patients continue to receive the safe high-quality care they need on day one of European Union exit and thereafter.

Diabetes: Medical Equipment

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England's News story of 14 November 2018, NHS to provide life changing glucose monitors for Type 1 diabetes patients, what plans NHS England has to make available nationally (a) AccuChek Expert, (b) Dexcom G6 and (c) EversenseXL; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: NHS England has recently announced plans to enable consistent national availability of the Freestyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring device according to published guidance.Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) can purchase any available blood glucose monitoring which has been approved for sale on the open market. The availability of AccuChek Expert, Dexcom G6 and Eversense XL products is a matter for CCGs who are primarily responsible for commissioning diabetes services, to meet the requirements of their population. In doing so, they need to ensure that the services they provide are fit for purpose, reflect the needs of the local population, are based on the available evidence and consider national guidelines. NHS England engages with technology companies developing products that may be of significant benefit to those with diabetes to seek to increase their availability to patients where appropriate.The Department does not collate data on the number of patients using these devices nationally or by clinical commissioning group.

Diabetes: Medical Equipment

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which blood glucose monitoring systems the NHS makes available; and how many people are using each such system (a) nationally and (b) in each clinical commissioning group area.

Steve Brine: NHS England has recently announced plans to enable consistent national availability of the Freestyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring device according to published guidance.Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) can purchase any available blood glucose monitoring which has been approved for sale on the open market. The availability of AccuChek Expert, Dexcom G6 and Eversense XL products is a matter for CCGs who are primarily responsible for commissioning diabetes services, to meet the requirements of their population. In doing so, they need to ensure that the services they provide are fit for purpose, reflect the needs of the local population, are based on the available evidence and consider national guidelines. NHS England engages with technology companies developing products that may be of significant benefit to those with diabetes to seek to increase their availability to patients where appropriate.The Department does not collate data on the number of patients using these devices nationally or by clinical commissioning group.

Zholia Alemi

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to inform (a) patients and (b) family members of patients who were treated or assessed by Zholia Alemi that she was employed as an NHS psychiatrist without qualifications for the role.

Stephen Hammond: NHS England has advised that it has established an Incident Management Group (IMG) to identify and assess any clinical concerns relating to the practise of Zholia Alemi. The IMG aims to confirm Zholia Alemi’s employment history, to assess clinical decisions made by her and to consider whether individuals need to be contacted in due course. Patients or family members who have a concern about Zholia Alemi or the care received by her have been advised to contact the local NHS service where they were treated.

Paediatrics: Mental Health Services

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many paediatric mental health nurses were employed by the NHS in each month since May 2010.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS England has recently announced plans to enable consistent national availability of the Freestyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring device according to published guidance.Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) can purchase any available blood glucose monitoring which has been approved for sale on the open market. The availability of AccuChek Expert, Dexcom G6 and Eversense XL products is a matter for CCGs who are primarily responsible for commissioning diabetes services, to meet the requirements of their population. In doing so, they need to ensure that the services they provide are fit for purpose, reflect the needs of the local population, are based on the available evidence and consider national guidelines. NHS England engages with technology companies developing products that may be of significant benefit to those with diabetes to seek to increase their availability to patients where appropriate.The Department does not collate data on the number of patients using these devices nationally or by clinical commissioning group.



Number of paediatric mental health nurses 2010-18
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Mental Health Services: Nurses

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many student nurses have been included in the NHS mental health nurse headcount in each month since May 2015.

Stephen Hammond: Student nurses not yet registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council are not included in the National Health Service mental health nurse headcount data. These students will not, as part of their programme of training, be contracted by any person or body to provide nursing care. A small minority of post-registration students studying part-time conversion or postgraduate courses will be included in the headcounts.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit

Sir David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims have been made for universal credit hardship payments.

Alok Sharma: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 147952 on 4 June.

Universal Credit

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what (a) detailed analysis and (b) impact assessments she has undertaken in areas with full-service universal credit in place in order to inform the future roll-out of that policy.

Alok Sharma: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 169858 on 11 September. In addition we have recently published the Social Security Advisory Committee response which includes a detailed analysis of Managed Migration which can be accessed at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/753714/draft-universal-credit-managed-migration-regulations-2018-report.pdf

Parental Leave

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department's policy is on shared parental leave.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department for Work and Pensions is committed to being a good modern employer and to offering family friendly employment policies that support business needs. This includes encouraging Shared Parental Leave by providing contractual Shared Parental Pay, which exceeds statutory arrangements and reflects best employment practice. Using Shared Parental Leave and Shared Parental Pay, employees who are having a baby or adopting a child may be able to share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay, if they meet the eligibility criteria. For 26 of those weeks leave, if an employee meets the qualifying criteria, departmental Shared Parental Pay will be paid at full pay, less any weeks’ statutory maternity pay, maternity allowance or statutory adoption pay and leave already taken. The remaining 13 weeks will be paid at statutory rate for 13 weeks. Employees may be able to share the pay and leave in the first year after their child is born or placed with their family for adoption and use Shared Parental Leave to take leave in blocks separated by periods of work, or take it all in one go. Employees can also choose to be off work together or to stagger the leave and pay.

Universal Credit

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the effect on claimants of universal credit of the 53 week rent year for many social housing tenants in 2019.

Justin Tomlinson: Universal Credit is paid on a monthly cycle to reflect the fact that the vast majority of people receive their wages monthly. Many social landlords still expect their tenants to pay rent on a weekly basis, a practice based upon a time when both wages and benefits were paid weekly. The effect of this is that, roughly every six years, there will be 53 payment days in a twelve-month period with the result that, over the cycle, the average social sector tenant will receive approximately 35p a week less towards their rent. A key principle of Universal Credit is that it simplifies the benefit system for working age claimants and re-assessing housing costs to reflect the number of rent payments in any particular year would be complicated and lead to confusion.

Universal Credit

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse has been of correcting underpayments for universal credit to date; and what proportion of the Government’s total expenditure on universal credit has been spent on meeting that cost since the roll out of universal credit.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is not held by the Department. The staff cost of correcting can not be disaggregated from other activity.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of personal independence payment cases overturned at (a) reconsideration and (b) appeal stage were initially assessed as scoring zero points in (i) Glasgow South West constituency, (ii) Scotland and (iii) the UK in each of the last three years.

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of personal independence payment cases that were initially assessed as scoring zero points and were overturned at (a) reconsideration and (b) appeal stage resulted in the award of the enhanced rate of (i) mobility, (ii) daily living, and (iii) both the enhanced rates in (A) Glasgow South West constituency, (B) Scotland and (C) the UK in each of the last three years.

Sarah Newton: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to increase the (a) accuracy and (b) timeliness of the real time information data used to calculate universal credit awards; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate she has made of the proportion of errors in universal credit awards which are attributable to errors in real time information data.

Alok Sharma: HMRC works closely with employers to improve the accuracy and timeliness of real time information (RTI) earnings data, to ensure that claimants receive the correct benefit award. We do not collect any information with regard to incorrect RTI data.

Home Office

Asylum: Human Trafficking

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the High Court judgment in respect of K & Anor, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department of 8 November 2018, whether all victims of trafficking who had their subsistence rates cut between March and November 2018 and subsequently exited the National Referral Mechanism will receive the full back payment.

Victoria Atkins: The Government is committed to tacking the scourge of modern slavery and supporting those affected by this crime.In 2017, Home Office Ministers agreed a comprehensive package of reforms to the National Referral Mechanism, which included the introduction of places of safety for those leaving situations of exploitation, trebling the period of move on support to assist victims moving out of government funded support and aligning the subsistence rates paid to potential victims of modern slavery with those received by asylum seekers.In light of the judgment in K and AM, we are currently putting in place processes to ensure that those who have been affected receive a full back payment as soon as possible. We will set out how we plan to respond in due course, including those who have left NRM support.We are committed to reforming the National Referral Mechanism to ensure that as many victims of modern slavery as possible get the support they need.

Large Goods Vehicles and Vans: Theft

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of incidents of theft from (a) commercial vans and (b) commercial HGVs in England in each of the last three years.

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many incidents of theft from commercial vehicles were reported in (a) Suffolk and (b) England in each of the last 12 months.

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the number of incidents of theft from commercial vehicles in England.

Victoria Atkins: The Home Office’s Commercial Victimisation Survey (CVS) estimates thefts from vehicles amongst business premises included in the survey each year. However, it is not possible to identify the type of vehicles involved and figures cannot be produced for Suffolk as the sample is not designed to yield sub-national estimates.Latest headline figures from the CVS can be found herehttps://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/703371/crime-against-businesses-headline-2017-tables.odsThe Home Secretary regularly meets with his Cabinet colleagues to discuss areas of mutual interest.

Immigration: Northern Ireland

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what (a) information and (b) training has been given to immigration officials on their obligations under the Good Friday Agreement; and whether those staff have been made aware of the rights of residents of Northern Ireland to identify either as Irish or British or both without prejudice to their immigration status and that of their spouses and family members.

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will amend his decision not to grant residency to the husband of Emma De Souza.

Caroline Nokes: Guidance for immigration officials can be found at https://www.gov.uk/topic/immigration-operational-guidance and staff training is based around this guidance. The Home Office complies with its obligations under the Belfast Agreement and respects the rights of the people of Northern Ireland to identify themselves as Irish or British or both as they may so chooseIt would be inappropriate to comment further in relation to Mr De Souza as the case is subject to ongoing legal proceedings.

Fire and Rescue Services: Mental Health Services

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to improve mental health support for firefighters.

Mr Nick Hurd: We recognise the vital role firefighters play and it is essential that fire and rescue authorities, as the employers, ensure that they receive the mental health support they require.Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services is assessing how well services understand and meet the wellbeing needs of their workforce and where improvements could be made.

Fire Prevention: Housing

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of residential fire inspection audits undertaken by local fire authorities.

Mr Nick Hurd: Fire and rescue authorities have responsibility for enforcing compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which applies to non-domestic premises, including the parts of multi-occupied residential buildings used in common by the occupants of more than one dwelling. The Fire and Rescue National Framework for England requires each authority to have a risk-based inspection programme in place to ensure compliance with the Fire Safety Order in its area.Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) will, as part of its inspection programme, include an assessment of how effective fire and rescue services in England are at protecting the public through the regulation of fire safety. One factor the Inspectorate will consider is the extent to which systematic, consistent and robust fire safety audits are undertaken. The first tranche of inspection reports, covering 14 fire and rescue services, is due to be published in December.

Drugs: Misuse

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of drug testing at festivals, nightclubs and other large gatherings of young people on the health and safety of those people.

Victoria Atkins: Drugs are controlled where there is scientific and medical evidence that they are harmful to health and society. The possession of any amount of a controlled drug is a criminal offence and the supply of a controlled drug is an even more serious offence. No illegal drug taking can be assumed to be safe and there is no safe way to take them.The Government’s approach remains clear: we must prevent illicit drug use in our communities and help those dependent on drugs to recover while ensuring our drug laws are enforced. In relation to drug testing at events, chief constables are responsible for operational decisions in their local area and we are not standing in their way.The National Policing Lead for Drugs provided updated advice in the summer to all Chief Constables to make them aware of matters that they should consider if working with event organisers who may wish to use drug testing services. He is currently considering this issue further in conjunction with forces.

Organised Crime: Sexual Offences

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to tackle organised sexual exploitation.

Victoria Atkins: In February 2017 the Government published its ‘Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation: Progress Report’ and announced a £40m package of measures to tackle all forms of sexual abuse and exploitation, including organised child sexual exploitation. The Progress Report details delivery of the ambitious programme of work set out in the 2015 Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation Report and signals a step change in our national response to sexual violence against children and young people.We are helping the police to respond to changing demand and improving capacity and capability through the Police Transformation Fund and with a £460m increase in overall funding 2018/19.To support the police to tackle organised sex-trafficking and other forms of modern slavery, the Government has provided £8.5m of additional funding to the police in England and Wales to provide bespoke and dedicated modern slavery capabilities. This police activity is supported at a national level by the National Crime Agency who lead multiagency operations to target key thematic slavery and trafficking threats including organised sexual exploitation.In addition, on 3 September 2018, the Home Secretary made clear his personal commitment to tackling child sexual abuse and exploitation in all its forms, demanding industry raise their response to the horrifying scale of online child sexual abuse, and making clear there would be no ‘no-go areas’ of inquiry into the offline grooming, abuse and exploitation of children.The Home Secretary announced additional investment in law enforcement capabilities; funding for prevention work through Lucy Faithful Foundation; investment in new technology like the Child Abuse Image Database, and; plans to lead concerted international action.

Slavery: Agriculture

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to combat modern day slavery in agriculture.

Victoria Atkins: In the UK, the Gangmasters Labour and Abuse Authority (GLAA) licenses businesses which provide workers to the farming, food processing and shellfish gathering sectors to make sure they meet the employment standards required by law; and carries out inspections and enforcement activity.The GLAA has been given police powers to investigate serious cases of labour market exploitation across the entire economy in England and Wales, and in 2016/17 the GLAA directly intervened on behalf of 4,691 workers to prevent them from exploitation. The GLAA also partner with businesses, such as Sainsbury’s, to deliver training sessions to their suppliers, so they can better identify and manage risks in their supply chains.Through the Home Office’s Modern Slavery Innovation Fund, we are currently funding Stronger Together to deliver 34 workshops to over 560 workers and employers in South Africa’s fruit and wine industry, so that they are better equipped to identify and address modern slavery.

Offences against Children: Internet

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding from the public purse his Department has allocated to the National Crime Agency specialist unit for investigating child sexual abuse online in the last 12 months.

Victoria Atkins: It has been the longstanding policy of successive Governments not to reveal specific details of the budgets or spending of the intelligence agencies.However, a recent NCA and NPCC joint bid to the Police Transformation Fund (PTF) secured £2.2 million for an immediate uplift to work to tackle online child sexual exploitation. This will fund a significant expansion of the Joint Operations Team (JOT). Furthermore, in his speech at the NSPCC in September, the Home Secretary announced an extra £21m investment in law enforcement and intelligence agencies over the next 18 months to enable a focus on reducing the volume of offending and pursuing the most hardened and dangerous abusers, which also includes further funding for the JOT.The JOT is a jointly managed National Crime Agency (NCA) and GCHQ capability, drawing on the experience and knowledge of the NCA and the high end capabilities and tradecraft of GCHQ to investigate and disrupt online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse. Working collaboratively provides a very powerful operating model. The JOT has supported the NCA in bringing offenders such as Dr Matthew Falder the university lecturer who committed 137 offences to justice. He was sentenced to 32 years imprisonment following their investigation.

Detection Rates

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of crimes unsolved in the latest year for which figures are available.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects outcomes data for police recorded crime which provides transparency on how crimes are resolved.These data are published quarterly and the latest figures, for the year ending June 2018 can be accessed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tables

Criminal Investigation

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of wanted suspects on the Police National Computer who have been wanted for longer than 12 months.

Mr Nick Hurd: Information on the number of wanted suspects on the Police National Computer is not available.

Immigrants: EU Nationals

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the EU Settlement Scheme for EU citizens.

Caroline Nokes: EU citizens make a huge contribution to our economy and society, and we want them to stay. The EU Settlement Scheme enables them to do so, in line with the draft Withdrawal Agreement. The scheme provides a simple, streamlined process for resident EU citizens and their family members to obtain their new UK immigration status. The scheme is being implemented on a phased basis and will be fully open by 30 March 2019.

Immigrants: EU Nationals

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department has taken to provide assurance to (a) users and (b) employers on the security of documents stored by cloud services for the EU Settlement Scheme.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office takes the security of all of our data extremely seriously, including digitised evidence provided by EU Settlement Scheme users. There are processes in place in the Home Office for the capturing and mitigation of risks and vulnerabilities to ensure appropriate control of our services. I can confirm this is the case for the EU Settlement SchemeAll Home Office systems including EU Exit applications undergo rigorous cyber strengthening prior to launch. This includes an independent security testing to ensure they are resilient to external attack.Our IT systems hosting platform include a number of mechanisms to detect and respond to malicious intrusions.All data is encrypted both in transit and at rest. Our IT staff are security cleared and your data will only be accessed by those who have a valid business reason to access it. The Home Office regularly monitors the systems for abuse and misuse.

Immigrants: DNA

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is his Department's policy to delete from its records evidence obtained as a result of a wrongful requirement for DNA testing to support immigration applications.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has directed the destruction of original DNA samples collected in response to an invalid requirement by his Department for DNA evidence to support immigration applications; and what records are held by his Department on where such samples are located.

Caroline Nokes: I can confirm that the use of DNA evidence in the three cohorts the Home Secretary spoke about in his statement of 25 October to the House did not involve collection or storage of DNA by Home Office staff. Any DNA evidence submitted would have been in the form of reports from approved DNA testing centres, stating whether familial relationships were evidenced. These reports may have been attached to case files.A Taskforce has been established so that anyone who feels that their case may have been influenced in any way by an inappropriate demand for DNA testing can get advice and support. Anyone concerned about these reports being held should contact the Taskforce, who will investigate the circumstances of each case and advise on the options, including deletion of the record from case files where appropriate.

Gangs: Wales

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of gang-related crime in (a) North Wales and (b) Wales.

Victoria Atkins: We do not keep information on gang related crime, but trends in knife crime, gun crime and homicide help give an indication of possible gang related crime in Wales and North Wales.The latest year-on-year data comparing June 2018 to June 2017 show that there is a bigger rise in knife crime in Wales (30%) compared to England and Wales as a whole (12%). Knife crime in North Wales has remained broadly stable in the same period, with 268 cases in the year to June 2018 (-1%, down from 270). When looking at the 5-year trend, knife crime in Wales has almost doubled between 2013/14 and 2017/18 (61% in E&W), and this is even more in North Wales specifically, where the number of knife crime cases increased from 100 in 2013/14 to 257 in 2017/18.Whilst gun crime in Wales has risen by 7% between 2013/14 and 2016/17, this is lower than the rise witnessed in England and Wales (31%). Gun crime in North Wales has gone down in the same period but note that these are generally low volumes (from 18 cases in 2013/14 to 13 in 2016/17).Finally, homicides in Wales more than doubled between 2013/14 and 2017/18, from 16 to 35 cases. This is a bigger proportionate rise than England and Wales, where homicides increased by 36% in the same period. An increase in homicides is also witnessed in North Wales, but again, these are low volumes (from 3 cases in 2013/14 to 12 in 2017/18).

Offences against Children: Social Media

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of social media platforms approaches to tackling grooming and online sexual abuse.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of imposing a regulatory requirement on social media platforms to invest in preventative measures to identify online grooming on social networking sites.

Victoria Atkins: In September, the Home Secretary made a speech setting out clear asks of industry, including stopping online child grooming and he made it clear that industry needed to do much more to respond to this evolving threat.We are already working with social media companies so we can protect users and change user behaviour online. While several of the tech giants have taken important and positive steps to make their platforms safer, the performance of internet companies overall has been very mixed.Earlier this month, the Home Secretary co-hosted the Microsoft led Hackathon in America, where he met with leading industry stakeholders to identify robust ways to tackle and prevent child sexual abuse on the internet. It was a well attended and positive event which saw all areas of the technological industries coming together in cooperation with Government in seeking to build and implement tools to take charge against this threat. A prototype tool was developed at the Hackathon that can be used to automatically flag potential conversations taking place between child groomers and children, which will be licensed free of charge to smaller and medium-sized technology companies worldwide.We have already committed to legislate and will set out our plans in the forthcoming Online Harms White Paper. How far we legislate will be informed by the industry response.This winter we will publish a White Paper, setting out new laws to tackle the full range of online harms and set clear responsibilities for tech companies to keep UK citizens safe. Until now, the Government has primarily encouraged internet companies to take action on a voluntary basis. There has been considerable progress through this approach, however, it has been slower in some areas than oth-ers and there is more to do. This is why we are now considering options around statutory intervention.The Government has heard stakeholder calls for an Internet Regulator and we must carefully consider all the options to address existing and emerging issues relating to online safety, including what legislation will be necessary and whether a regulator is needed.

Offences against Children: Internet

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that children are safe from online grooming.

Victoria Atkins: We have prioritised child sexual abuse as a national threat and are helping the police to respond to the changing demand with a £460 million increase in overall funding in 2018/19. This will help transform the law enforcement response and empower police forces to apply their best skills and expertise to tackle the problem. In September, the Home Secretary announced an additional £21 million increase over the next 18 months for law enforcement and the intelligence agencies which includes further funding of the Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCUs) to target online grooming of children.The Government has also significantly increased resources to the National Crime Agency (NCA) leading to a near doubling of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command (CEOP)investigative capability, and the Joint Operations Team, a collaborative venture between the NCA and GCHQ launched in 2015, which is targeting the most sophisticated online offenders.  The Home Secretary has made a call to industry to raise their response to the horrifying scale of online child sexual abuse; and made clear there would be no ‘no-go areas’ of inquiry into the offline grooming, abuse and exploitation of children.In November, engineers from some of the world’s biggest tech firms, including Microsoft, Facebook, Google, Snap and Twitter, worked for 2 days at a Hackathon in the United States co-hosted by the Home Secretary and Microsoft, which tasked industry experts to come up with tools to identify online child grooming. A prototype tool has been developed that can be used to automatically flag potential conversations taking place between child groomers and children which will be licensed free of charge to smaller and medium-sized technology companies worldwide.Collaborative working between Police forces and the NCA is resulting in around 400 arrests each month for online CSEA offences, and the safe-guarding of around 500 children each month.

Emergency Services: Mental Health Services

Thelma Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department,  what steps his Department is taking to ensure that retired emergency service workers have access to mental health support.

Mr Nick Hurd: Since 2014, the Government has provided £7m to pay for mental health support through Mind’s Blue Light Programme. This ensures that our current and former emergency service workers have the support they require.Emergency service workers have demonstrated extraordinary courage and fortitude in the face of major challenges over recent years, including terrorist attacks and the Grenfell Tower fire. We are grateful to them for their tireless work and dedication to duty.

Home Office: Meetings

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many occasions Ministers of his Department have had meetings with (a) Mermaids UK, (b) Stonewall and (c) Gendered Intelligence in the last three years.

Victoria Atkins: Home Office Ministers have regular meetings as part of the process of policy development and delivery. No Minister has met with the named organisations in a Home Office capacity.I refer the Hon. Member for Monmouth to the answers given by the Government and Equalities Office, UIN 194662 and 194663 on 29th November 2018.

Human Trafficking

Siobhain McDonagh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether transport and other expenses payments which his Department introduced on 1 November 2019 for all potential victims of trafficking in the adult victim care contract have started in all safe houses.

Victoria Atkins: In light of the judgment in K and AM, the Home Office has immediately reinstated the top up paid to those in the Victim Care Contract who are also receiving support from the asylum support system, so that they receive a total of £65 per week.In consequence of the reinstatement of the top up paid to potential victims who are also receiving support from the asylum support system, the staged introduction of the scheme for further financial assistance and assistance with travel costs within the Victim Care Contract has been paused. These changes were intended to come into operation on 1 November 2018 for potential victims who were also receiving support from the asylum support system, and on 1 February 2019 for others in the Victim Care Contract.We will work through the implications of the judgment in respect to our future approach to financial support. We are committed to reforming the National Referral Mechanism to ensure that as many victims of modern slavery as possible get the support they need.

Offences against Children: Internet

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to monitor the effectiveness of the National Crime Agency’s Thinkuknow education programme in protecting children from online abuse.

Mr Ben Wallace: The National Crime Agency’s Thinkuknow education programme endeavours to help children and young people identify the risks they may face online, build resilience against the threat of child sexual abuse and exploitation and know where to seek further support, including where appropriate, reporting directly to the NCA.The NCA’s performance is monitored quarterly through the NCA’s internal governance structure and overseen by the NCA Board. It is then reported directly to the Home Secretary. This performance reporting includes information on ThinkuKnow.There was an external evaluation of ThinkuKnow in 2009. CEOP took on board the recommendations, and the NCA continues to develop its education tools and resources in conjunction with young people, as well as its Ambassador network.Following the implementation of new ThinkuKnow resources for eight to ten year olds in November 2016, new resources for four to seven year olds will be launched in January 2019. These have been designed in line with best practice agreed with the PSHE association and have been developed following consultation with over 2000 parents, carers and professionals, and 25 sessions in 12 schools.

Proscribed Organisations: Internet

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on the responsibility of social media and internet companies to proactively search for content promoting or originating from proscribed organisations.

Victoria Atkins: Home Office Ministers have regular meetings as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Asylum: Housing

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many local authorities have signed up to participate in the asylum dispersal scheme but have not had accommodation procured within their boundaries in each year since 2010.

Caroline Nokes: Our records show that we have agreements in place with a total of 150 Local Authorities comprising 129 which are currently actively participating and 21 Local Authorities that have agreed to participate in dispersal but have not yet procured any accommodation.

Offences against Children

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of police resources to tackle child sexual exploitation.

Victoria Atkins: We have provided forces with the funding they need to tackle the changing demands they face, including those from child sexual exploitation. In 2018/19 we increased funding in the policing system by £460 million, which includes £280 million going to forces through increased council tax precept flexibility. We have prioritised child sexual abuse as a national threat, one of only six such threats that require prioritisation by forces. This will facilitate prioritisation and planning of capabilities to tackle this terrible crime.We have begun a step change in our approach to dealing with crimes against vulnerable children and people across the country and have invested significantly in a programme of reform to help the police to respond to changing crimes. This includes significant extra investment through the Police Transformation Fund (PTF) to transform policing in response to crimes against vulnerable individuals such as child sexual abuse.In addition, we are investing an extra £21 million over the next 18 months to improve how our law enforcement agencies reduce the volume of offending and pursue the most dangerous and prolific offenders. This includes further funding of the Regional Organised Crime Units to target online grooming of children.

Health Services: Undocumented Migrants

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Health and Social Care Information Centre, the Department of Health and Social Care and his Department, published in November 2016, (a) how many immigration offenders were reported to the Home Office by NHS Digital and (b) what sanctions those immigration offenders received after being so reported to the Home Office in (i) 2016, (ii) 2017 and (iii) 2018.

Caroline Nokes: The Memorandum of Understanding which came into force on 1 January 2017 has now been withdrawn. A new Memorandum of Understanding is being produced to reflect the commitments made by my Hon Friend, the Minister of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on 9 May 2018.NHS Digital information on the number of Home Office requests processed in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding in 2017 can be found at: http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/health-committee/memorandum-of-understanding-on-datasharing-between-nhs-digital-and-the-home-office/written/76672.htmlData on 2018 requests can be accessed at: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/data-access-request-service-dars/register-of-approved-data-releasesThe information provided to the Home Office supports the broader intelligence picture regarding a particular individual and their whereabouts. The Home Office does not record the information in such a way as to attribute it to specific outcomes.

Asylum: Iran

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of rejected Iranian asylum seekers in the UK who have no recourse to public funds.

Caroline Nokes: Asylum Seekers whose claims and, if appropriate, appeals have been refused are no longer eligible for asylum support and are expected to return home. We offer assistance to those who choose to do so by actively promoting the Home Office Voluntary Return Service. The Home Office continues to provide accommodation and support to those who are temporarily unable to leave the UK because of a practical or legal obstacle through the Section 4 provisions, and to families with children under the age of 18.Information about asylum decisions, broken down by Country of Origin, is available in the published statistics here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2018/how-many-people-do-we-grant-asylum-or-protection-to#asylum-applications-and-initial-decisionsNo Recourse to Public Funds is the default condition for grants of leave to remain in most categories, and is a separate issue to that of asylum seekers who are no longer eligible for support. Leave to remain in the UK is normally granted with a condition that prevents the person and their dependants from receiving welfare assistance from public funds. However, where the person qualifies for leave to remain on grounds related to their family or private life the condition is lifted if they or they or their dependent children would otherwise be destitute.

Deportation: West Africa

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2018 to Question 174681, how many of the 60 individuals scheduled to be on the charter flight to Nigeria and Ghana from Stansted airport on 28 March 2017 have since been granted leave to remain in the UK.

Caroline Nokes: Of the 60 people due to be removed on that flight, 1 person was issued a residence card as a non-EEA national family member confirming their right to reside in accordance with EEA Treaty rights.

Vetting

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the letter from the Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood, MIN/0014431/18, what assessment he has made of the effect of instances of No Further Action being disclosed within enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service checks on people's ability to secure employment.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the letter from the Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood, MIN/0014431/18, what guidance is provided to Chief Officers to enable them to make decisions on what constitutes relevant information which ought to be disclosed as part of enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service checks.

Victoria Atkins: The principles to be applied by chief officers in making decisions about what constitutes relevant information are set out in statutory guidance issued under section 113B(4A) of the Police Act 1997 by the Home Office. The guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/452321/6_1155_HO_LW_Stat_Dis_Guide-v3.pdfIt is for the employer to decide whether an individual is suitable for any particular role. The Government does not record the employment decisions made by employers after they have undertaken a DBS check.

Police National Computer

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to review the length of time a person's event history is retained in Police National Computer records.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office and the police, in conjunction with regulators including the Information Commissioner’s Office, regularly keep under review rules around the retention of a person’s event history on the Police National Computer.

Northern Ireland Office

Unexplained Wealth Orders: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what parts of the Criminal Finances Act 2017 dealing with potential unexplained wealth orders have yet to come into force in Northern Ireland; and whether the introduction of those parts of that Act is dependent on there being a Northern Ireland Executive.

John Penrose: Northern Ireland Office officials have been in regular contact with both the Home Office and the Northern Ireland Department of Justice (DoJ) about this. These orders, and several other elements of the Criminal Finances Act 2017, relate to devolved matters. The Security Minister gave a commitment to Parliament not to commence any CFA provisions affecting devolved matters until legislative consent is secured. This is one of the many issues that demonstrate that devolved government is in the best interests of everyone in Northern Ireland.

Treasury

Borders

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will lift the non-disclosure agreements that apply to the Border Delivery Group to enable that Group to update businesses on its contingency plans for after 29 March 2019 in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Mel Stride: The Border Delivery Group is actively seeking agreement for communication with stakeholders about border issues to be carried out without non-disclosure agreements as soon as possible.

Shipping: Containers

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what is the average length of time in hours between HMRC (a) seizing a container for examination under suspicion of the value declared of goods contained being too low and making a decision on enforcement action and (b) seizing a container for examination under suspicion of the value declared of goods contained being too low and the return of the container.

Mel Stride: In any individual case the time between intercepting a consignment, HMRC’s compliance decision and the return of the container will be affected by factors outside HMRC’s control. This includes a period of up to 30 days where the importer has the right to present further evidence before HMRC makes its decision. Due to the range of possible outcomes of HMRC’s examination activity HMRC does not routinely capture information on average times taken.

Shipping: Containers

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on logistics businesses of HMRC seizing containers on suspicion of the value declared of the goods contained being too low.

Mel Stride: As part of its end to end approach to tackling customs fraud risks, HMRC is undertaking physical pre-clearance checks targeted at high risk traders. The checks are conducted inland to avoid causing congestion at ports. HMRC regularly meets with trade associations to identify ways of minimising the impact on logistics businesses of this necessary compliance activity.

Shipping: Containers

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many containers HMRC seized under the suspicion of the value of the goods declared being too low in each of the last five years; and of those containers that were seized (a) for how many how did HMRC deem additional charges were due and what was the (i) highest, (ii) lowest and (iii) average additional charge that was due; and (b) how many cases there were for which HMRC did not deem that any additional charges were due.

Mel Stride: Disclosing information of this nature may help fraudsters avoid HMRC’s compliance checks. For this reason it would not be appropriate for the Government to release the information requested.

Social Services: Finance

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his long-term plans are for the adult social care precept after 2019-20.

Elizabeth Truss: Funding for Local Government after 2019-20 will be agreed at the Spending Review next year.

Apprentices: Taxation

Julie Elliott: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the contribution to the public purse of the apprenticeship levy since its introduction.

Mel Stride: Monthly receipts data for the Apprenticeship Levy is published by HM Revenue & Customs in their Tax & NIC Receipts publication which can be found online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/hmrc-tax-and-nics-receipts-for-the-uk

Revenue and Customs: Pay

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it is Government policy to ensure that the average wage of HMRC staff will raise at least in line with the wage growth forecast made by the Office for Budget Responsibility over the next three years.

Mel Stride: All aspects of pay in HMRC, including wage growth and annual pay awards for staff, are subject to the principles set out in the civil service pay guidance as agreed by Ministers.

Revenue and Customs: Pay

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many HMRC staff are paid at the rate of £7.83 per hour.

Mel Stride: There are six HMRC staff paid at the rate of £7.83 per hour. In April 2019, when the National Living Wage threshold increases to £8.21 per hour, these employees will receive a salary increase to bring them in line with the new hourly rate.

Revenue and Customs: Pay

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans HMRC has to respond to the 2018 Civil Service People Survey, published in August 2018 in relation to the pay and benefits package provided to its staff.

Mel Stride: Following the 2018 pay award, HMRC committed to explore the opportunities available in pay flexibility to achieve a better, mutually agreeable and sustainable pay offer for the longer term. This work is underway through engagement with senior leaders and trade unions and will engage HMRC employees in developing the case for reform.

Revenue and Customs: Grievance Procedures

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 24 July 2017 to Question 5899 on Revenue and Customs: Grievance Procedures, what the timeframe is for HMRC to remove the grievance test; and for what the reason that test was not removed in December 2017.

Mel Stride: HMRC has taken a fundamental review of its grievance policy and approach. It is developing the implementation plan to ensure the right suite of training and employee support is in place and ensuring its approach is aligned with the outcome of the Review of Arrangements for Tackling Bullying, Harassment and Misconduct in the Civil Service.

Natural England: Finance

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 23 November 2018 to Question 191370 on Natural England: Finance, if he will make publicly available the UK Government Investments internal governance review of Natural England.

Robert Jenrick: UK Government Investments’ internal governance review of Natural England is still under discussion with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and Natural England. There are no current plans to publish this review.

Financial Services: EU Law

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his oral contribution of 22 November 2018, Official Report column 1097, on the terms of the agreement that he has reached with the EU and EU equivalence on financial services not being withdrawn on a whim, what assurances he has received on the future notice period for withdrawal of such equivalence by the EU.

John Glen: The political declaration states at Paragraph 39 on page 9, that both parties are committed to developing ‘…close and structured cooperation on regulatory and supervisory matters’. It goes on to note that this cooperation should ‘…include transparency and appropriate consultation in the process of adoption, suspension and withdrawal of equivalence decisions’. This means that the UK and EU have instructed negotiators to deliver a legal agreement by the end of 2020 which incorporates these principles in relation to equivalence in financial services, keeping in mind a joint commitment to preserve financial stability and market integrity.

Poverty

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the accuracy of the claim made by the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights that real time information data has a 2 per cent rate of inaccuracy; and if he will make a statement.

Mel Stride: The reference to two percent within the UN Special Rapporteur report on extreme poverty and human rights relates to the impact of incorrect and late Real Time Information (RTI) on Universal Credit claimants. HMRC and DWP work closely to monitor and drive improvements. DWP agree the statement that about 2% of UC claimants, where the claimant and/or their partner are in work, are affected by misreported earnings.

PAYE

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of employer real time information returns are received by HMRC on time.

Mel Stride: The timeliness of Real Time Information (RTI) has consistently improved with 95.5% of all RTI submissions being on time in the last closed tax year.

Bus Services: Subsidies

Darren Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will provide sufficient funding to local authorities to enable bus subsidies to return to their 2010 levels in real terms.

Elizabeth Truss: Government support for bus services has averaged £2.2 billion a year since 2010/11, which is 23 per cent more than the average yearly spend between 1996/97 and 2009/10 in real terms.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Sports: Wales

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what spending on (a) Olympic legacy and (b) other programmes has resulted in consequential funding for Wales in each of the last five years.

Mims Davies: The Block Grant Transparency publication (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/block-grant-transparency-december-2017-publication) sets out details of all additions to the Devolved Administrations’ budgets since the 2015 Spending Review. The Barnett Formula will have been applied to all changes to the DCMS budget at both Spending Reviews and at Fiscal Events in the normal way as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. Companies from across the country have been directly engaged in legacy infrastructure and projects - for example, South Wales based Pro Steel were awarded contracts as part of the transformation of the Olympic Stadium roof post-2012 Games, they secured a £1m loan to enable them to compete for the work from Finance Wales. Pro Steel were also awarded a subcontract by BAM Nuttal for transformation work in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park post games consisting of re-purposing and construction of a bridge in the north of the Park near the Velodrome. They were also awarded the contract to make modifications and strengthening works to another bridge, and supply and installation of a third bridge. Last week I met with my counterparts in Wales and Scotland to discuss the many opportunities the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games presents to the whole of the UK. The department and I look forward to continuing to work closely with the devolved nations to ensure the many opportunities the Games presents - from hosting the Queen's Baton Relay to providing a base for athletes to train - are seized across the country.

Nuisance Calls

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 18 October 2018 to Question 178225 on Nuisance calls, what steps the Government is taking to reduce levels of vishing.

Margot James: The Home Office holds responsibility for the Joint Fraud Taskforce, while DCMS is responsible for policy on tackling nuisance calls.  The Joint Fraud Taskforce is working with industry to tackle Card Not Present Fraud, including fraudulent purchases made over the telephone. Since September 2016 the Government has been running the Take Five fraud awareness campaign designed to urge the public and businesses to take time to consider whether a situation they find themselves in is genuine. Specific advice on phone scams and vishing can be found at www.takefive-stopfraud.org.uk  There are existing measures that make it mandatory for all direct marketing firms to display their calling line identification - making it easier for people to identify direct marketing calls, and choose whether to accept them. In addition, Government has recently legislated in the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018 to further restrict direct marketing by placing a ban on cold calls offering to settle personal injury or payment protection insurance claims if the claimant has not chosen to ‘opt-in’.

Social Media: Children

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to require through annual transparency reporting social media platforms to disclose how they keep children safe.

Margot James: We will publish an Online Harms White Paper in the Winter, which will set out our proposals for future legislative and non-legislative measures, including future guidance and transparency reports. These proposals will deliver the Digital Charter's ambitions of making the UK the safest place in the world to be online, whilst also leading the world in innovation-friendly regulation that supports the growth of the tech sector.

Arts: Free Movement of People

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has had discussions with the Home Secretary on preserving freedom of movement for people in the performance and production of creative works sector after the UK leaves the EU; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: The Prime Minister has been clear that as we leave the EU, free movement of people will end. A new, skills-based immigration system will be introduced to ensure we continue to attract the talented people we need. We know that continued access to international talent and skills is a key concern for the creative industries as we leave the EU. The UK recognises that mobility is important to the creative and cultural sector, with the inclusion of a specific reference to the importance of mobility for creative, cultural and sporting cooperation in the White Paper on the Future Relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union. The government will set out further detail on the UK’s future immigration system in due course, taking into account the findings of the Migration Advisory Committee. Any future mobility arrangements agreed on a reciprocal basis with the EU will be consistent with ending free movement, and my department will continue to work closely with the Home Office to ensure the needs of the creative industries are heard.

Johnston Press

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has met the right hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip to discuss the future of Johnston Press since his appointment.

Jeremy Wright: I have not met with the right hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip to discuss the future of Johnston Press.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Fracking: Carbon Emissions

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the level of UK carbon emissions of fugitive emissions from fracking.

Claire Perry: Management of fugitive emissions is covered by the Environment Agency permit. As part of the permit application, the operator will need to describe the management of fugitive emissions in an ‘emissions management plan’.During operations the operator will be required to undertake environmental monitoring, including emissions monitoring, to demonstrate compliance with their permits. In some cases, depending on the risks presented by a site or community concerns, the Environment Agency may carry out extra monitoring themselves.As a further safeguard, the Infrastructure Act 2015 makes it clear that hydraulic fracturing activities cannot take place unless appropriate arrangements have been made for monitoring emissions of methane into the air.In addition, the Government is grant funding an environmental monitoring programme led by the British Geological Survey (BGS) in the Fylde (Lancashire) and Kirby Misperton (North Yorkshire), where applications for shale gas wells have been made.

Renewable Energy: Taiwan

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to co-operate with Taiwan on renewable energy; and whether his Department plans actively to engage with Taiwan’s delegation at the 24th Session of the Conference of the Parties under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 2018.

Claire Perry: Cooperation on renewable energy forms part of the UK’s commercial and economic ties with Taiwan. In 2017 we agreed to initiate an official-level dialogue on energy as a component of the annual Trade Talks. The first meeting took place in June 2018 in London between officials from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Department for International Trade, and a delegation led by Taiwan’s Bureau of Energy. The dialogue focussed on renewable energy, particularly offshore wind, grid stability and smart energy systems. Both sides agreed that there was value in further dialogue and opportunities for businesses to work together on renewable energy.Broader energy and climate change cooperation between the UK and Taiwan is part of our economic and commercial relationship. We expect this engagement to continue in the margins of the 24th Conference of the Parties under the UNFCCC next month, though no formal plans have yet been made. Broad cooperation is vital for tackling this global issue.

Research: Expenditure

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much the Government has spent on R&D in each of the last five years.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government has increased spending on R&D in the last five years.Table 3 of the ONS statistical bulletin “UK Government expenditure on science, engineering and technology 2016” gives the following figures for total UK Government net expenditure on R&D, including indicative UK contributions to EU R&D, of £ million201220132014201520169,95310,81610,94111,07011,230 We have an ambition to raise total public and private R&D expenditure to 2.4% of GDP by 2027. As a first step to reaching the 2.4% target, we announced in the 2016 Autumn Statement, and expanded in the 2017 Budget, an additional of £7 billion for R&D over 5 years from 2017-18 to 2021-22 as part of the National Productivity Investment Fund.We expect to see 2017 data next March.

Energy: Housing

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2018 to Question 159646 on Energy: Housing, how many applications for feed-in tariffs were (a) made and (b) approved in respect of properties with an energy performance certificate of D and above between June 2015 and June 2016.

Claire Perry: The central Feed-In Tariffs (FIT) register does not record the number of applications made. Between 1 June 2015 and 31 May 2016 there were 140,014 installations with an energy performance certificate of D and above accredited under the scheme.

Nuclear Power Stations: Cumbria

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the likely effect of Toshiba's decision to withdraw from constructing a proposed nuclear power station in Cumbria on future UK energy production.

Richard Harrington: Toshiba’s decision to withdraw from Moorside was a commercial one which will understandably have come as a disappointment to the people of West Cumbria. However, the site will return to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in due course and we will consider options for its future. The site remains eligible for nuclear new build projects and we welcome discussions with potential investors and operators.

Pay

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has issued public information setting out the difference between the national minimum wage and the living wage.

Kelly Tolhurst: We are committed to ensuring all employers pay their workers correctly. As part of our enforcement strategy, HMRC target workers and employers with information and advice. In April 2018 we launched a £1.48 million campaign to raise awareness of NMW rules, particularly in sectors with a high risk of non-compliance. Full guidance setting out the difference between the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage is available on www.gov.uk and within the associated guidance document entitled ‘Calculating the National Minimum Wage’.

Job Security

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent meetings he has had with union representatives on job security in the work force.

Kelly Tolhurst: Ministers and officials of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy meet union representatives regularly to discuss a wide range of issues, including those relating to employment and the UK’s labour market.

Copyright: EU Action

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support the inclusion in the EU Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market of provisions to ensure that creators receive fair remuneration for the use of their works.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government supports the principle that creators should be fairly rewarded for their work whilst ensuring that we continue to encourage investment in new content and innovative services. We are positively engaging with our European partners to achieve this.

Copyright: EU Countries

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on the reciprocal relationships the UK has with the EU that enable collective management organisations to collect royalties from EU countries and distribute to creators in the UK.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government has considered this issue in the context of its Brexit analysis. It has concluded that the reciprocal arrangements between UK Collective Management Organisations (CMOs) and EU CMOs to collect royalties from EU countries and distribute to creators in the UK are private commercial agreements which are expected to continue after the UK has exited the European Union.

Conditions of Employment: Pregnancy

Mrs Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 25 June 2018 to Question 155213 on conditions of employment: pregnancy, when the Government plans to publish a review of employment protections for women who are pregnant or returning from maternity leave.

Kelly Tolhurst: The review is underway, and we plan to publish a consultation in due course.

Nuclear Power Stations: Cumbria

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much money his Department has spent on the Moorside Nuclear Power Station project in Cumbria since February 2017.

Richard Harrington: New nuclear projects in the UK, including Moorside, are developer led. As a private developer led project, the government has not spent any public money other than staff and adviser costs associated with working with the range of stakeholders involved in taking that project forward.

Nuclear Power Stations: Cumbria

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has plans for a takeover of the Moorside Nuclear Power station project in Cumbria as a result of the announcement made by Toshiba on 8 November 2018 that the company was withdrawing from that project.

Richard Harrington: The Moorside site will return to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in due course and we will consider options for its future.

Nuclear Power Stations: Cumbria

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has plans to allocate funding to identify a new operator for the Moorside Nuclear Power Station project.

Richard Harrington: New nuclear projects in the UK are developer led; it is therefore for developers to come forward with plans for new power stations. The Moorside site will return to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in due course and we will consider options for its future. We welcome discussions with potential investors and operators at the Moorside site.

Research: Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the accuracy of the estimate made by the Campaign for Science and Engineering that R&D funding will require an additional £9 billion a year by 2027 to meet the target of 2.4 per cent of GDP investment across the economy by that year.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government welcomes the contribution of organisations such as the Campaign for Science and Engineering to the public debate.The CaSE estimates set out a possible scenario for moving towards the 2.4% R&D ambition; though there are a number of assumptions and uncertainties in any such assessment.The figures presented by CaSE also highlight the role that increased private sector investment will need to play in meeting this challenge, and we are working with industry on our roadmap to meet the target.

Science: Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to introduce a long-term funding plan for science.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government has a long-term funding plan for science. We are increasing public R&D spending by £7bn over 5 years, and we are working with UK Research and Innovation and other key partners to develop a roadmap that sets out how government and industry will work together to reach our target of increasing R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Social Rented Housing: Repairs and Maintenance

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answers of 20 November 2018 to Questions 190336 and 190337, what estimate he has made of the expenditure by private registered providers of social housing on maintenance and repairs in (a) 2014, (b) 2015 and (c) 2016.

Kit Malthouse: Expenditure on maintenance and major repairs by private registered providers of social housing was £5.1 billion in 2014, £5.2 billion in 2015 and £5.1 billion in 2016.

Local Government: Pensions

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the draft Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018 apply to the Local Government Pension Scheme.

Rishi Sunak: These draft regulations make minor and technical changes to correct any elements of the UK’s occupational and personal pensions legislation that will not work effectively after the UK departs the EU. They will not apply to the Local Government Pension Scheme.

Market Surveillance Coordination Committee

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on what dates officials in his Department have attended the Market Surveillance Coordination Committee since 2015.

James Brokenshire: The Market Surveillance Coordination Committee (MSCC), established in 2009, provides an important role in coordinating and setting strategic direction. It meets twice a year.The Department’s records show that Department officials attended in December 2016, December 2017 and January, March and September 2018. The Department does not hold records of attendance prior to 2016.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Grievance Procedures

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many employment grievances which have been submitted to his Department since 1 January 2016 were (a) wholly upheld, (b) partially upheld or (c) remain outstanding; and if he will make a statement.

Jake Berry: The Department can confirm that there have been a total of 15 informal and formal employment grievances raised by staff and registered centrally in the time since 1 January 2016. Complete outcome data for these cases is not held centrally and therefore we are unable to confirm the number of cases that were (a) wholly upheld, (b) partially upheld or (c) remain outstanding.In November 2017 the Department introduced improved internal processes for monitoring and managing employee grievances and central data retention was improved to aid decision and investigation officers involved in grievances and disputes.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Grievance Procedures

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many formal employment grievances have been lodged by employees of his Department since January 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Jake Berry: There have been eight formal employment grievances raised by staff and registered centrally in this Department in the time since 1 January 2016. This includes cases that have subsequently been withdrawn, not upheld, upheld, and still presently under investigation.In November 2017 the Department introduced improved internal processes for monitoring and managing employee grievances and central data retention was improved to aid decision and investigation officers involved in grievances and disputes.

Green Belt: South East

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to protect green spaces in the South East.

Kit Malthouse: The Government is committed to protecting our environment. As set out on the 25 Year Environment Plan, we are drawing up a national framework of green infrastructure standards, ensuring that new developments include accessible green spaces and that any area with little or no green space can be improved for the benefit of the community. We intend to publish the standards in 2019 and incorporate them into planning guidance so that councils can use them when making planning decisions across the country - including in the south east.Our revised planning rule book sets out how new development should happen in right places across the country including in the south east, through:making as much use as possible of suitable brownfield and under-used land;optimising density of development, significantly raising minimum densities in town and city centres, and in other locations well served by public transport;maintaining strong protection of the Green Belt;making clear that existing open space, sports and recreational buildings and land should not be built on unless they are clearly shown to be surplus to requirements or their loss would be replaced by equivalent or better provision in a suitable location;setting out that council’s planning policies should include sufficient provision for the conservation and enhancement of green spaces;highlighting the importance of green space in encouraging healthy lifestyles; andmaking provision for communities to identify and protect green areas of particular importance to them through the designation of land as Local Green Space through local and neighbourhood plans, which gives them a very high level of protection from redevelopment or inappropriate use.In September 2017, the Government created the ‘Parks Action Group’ comprising of experts from across the parks, heritage and the leisure sector and invested £500,000 to support the development of initiatives to identify solutions for safeguarding our parks and green spaces, to ensure they have long and sustainable futures.The group has been working collaboratively across key priorities – including assessing quality standards and sharing good practice. We are currently developing a programme of work aimed at transforming the way in which green spaces are developed, managed and sustained.  We expect to announce our progress on this in early 2019.

Ministry of Defence

European Fighter Aircraft: Safety Measures

Douglas Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2018 to Question 189831 on European Fighter Aircraft: Safety Measures, and with reference to Regulatory Article 1205 para 1b, on what basis the operating duty holder's tolerable and ALARP safety statement for the Typhoon aircraft is made when considering the mid-air collision risk.

Stuart Andrew: The requirements of Regulatory Article (RA) 1205 para 1b are fully met as part of the Operating duty holder's Tolerable and ALARP safety statement consideration of mid-air collision risk.The Typhoon Safety Case explicitly states what is Reasonably Practicable and Tolerable in terms of fitment of Collision Warning Systems and the other systems detailed in RA1205 for this platform. The RA states that the 'Collision Warning System' term is intentionally used to allow flexibility in identifying the optimal solution for platforms, including those currently under development.

Clyde Naval Base: Safety

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many nuclear safety events have occured on vessels other than submarines at Faslane in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many nuclear safety events have occured at Faslane in a location other than on board a vessel in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many leaks of radioactive coolant there have been from vessels other than submarines at Faslane in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many leaks of radioactive coolant there have been at Faslane in locations other than on board a vessel in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many nuclear safety events there have been on board vessels at sea in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many leaks of radioactive coolant there have been on vessels at sea in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many nuclear safety events there have been at Coulport in each year since 2006.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many accidents were reported under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 at (a) HM Naval Base Clyde and (b) Royal Navy Armaments Depot Coulport in each of the last five years; and what the circumstances of each such accident were.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many fires have taken place on UK (a) nuclear-powered and (b) nuclear-armed submarines in the last five years; and how many of those fires on submarines occurred (a) at sea and (b) while berthed.

Stuart Andrew: The historical nature and scope of the information requested is such that it will take time to collate. Once this process is completed I will write to the hon. Member.

Army

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the Order of Battle is by (a) manpower and (b) basing locations for the (i) Infantry, (ii) Royal Artillery, (iii) Royal Corps of Signals, (iv) Army Medical Services, (v) Adjutant General's Corps, (vi) Royal Armoured Corps, (vii) Army Air Corps, (viii) Royal Engineers, (ix) Royal Logistics Corps, (x) Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and (xi) Intelligence Corps.

Mark Lancaster: A breakdown of Army units by corps, with details of their current liability and location, is provided in the attached table. The units are listed in corps order of precedence and the table includes both reserve and regular units, but excludes training regiments. As part of the Army 2020 (Refine) work announced by the then Secretary of State for Defence on 15 December 2016, the Army is currently reshaping its structures. This means that some details will change as Army 2020 (Refine) continues to be developed and implemented. 



194616 - Order of Battle with Manpower and Basing
(PDF Document, 290.27 KB)

AWE: Expenditure

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has paid to AWE Management Ltd under the Atomic Weapons Establishment management and operation contract in each year since 2000.

Stuart Andrew: The following table shows payments to AWE Management Ltd under the Management and Operations contract for each financial year since 2000-01, at outturn prices: Financial Year£ million2000-012752001-022642002-032582003-042862004-053542005-064932006-076872007-088942008-098002009-108702010-119442011-129412012-138612013-149612014-159982015-169702016-179382017-181,020

Ministry of Defence: Recruitment

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many posts for nuclear-qualified and experienced staff in his Department have been advertised in each of the last three years; and how many of those posts were vacant at each Departmental location on the most recent date for which figures are available.

Stuart Andrew: The information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Defence Equipment

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the inventory of his Department is; and what proportion of that inventory is obsolete.

Stuart Andrew: The value of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) inventory is shown in Note 11 to the MOD Annual Report and Accounts which is published on gov.uk at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministry-of-defence-annual-report-and-accounts-2017-to-2018.A detailed breakdown of obsolete equipment is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.The MOD continually reviews inventory holdings and, where stock is identified as surplus and no longer in use or obsolete, there are a number of disposal options, including via the Defence Equipment Sales Authority.

Armed Forces: Proscribed Organisations and Radicalism

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of the British armed forces have been (a) subject to service discipline at any level, (b) dismissed and (c) prosecuted for having links to far-right extremist groups or proscribed organisations.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Extremist ideology is completely at odds with the values and ethos of the Armed Forces. The Armed Forces have robust measures in place to ensure those exhibiting extremist views are neither tolerated nor permitted to serve. Service discipline/administrative action taken at any level against these actions is not held in the format requested.Following a trial in Birmingham Crown Court a serving soldier was convicted of committing terrorism offences related to membership of a proscribed organisation and sentenced to eight years imprisonment. A second soldier was found not guilty.Any Service person receiving a sentence of imprisonment can expect to be discharged. Those who have fallen short of the Armed Forces' high standards are dealt with administratively, which may include their discharge.

Defence Equipment and Support: Pay

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how the market benchmarks for the April 2017 Defence Equipment and Support employee pay structure were calculated.

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, who calculated the market benchmarks for the April 2017 Defence Equipment and Support employee pay structure.

Stuart Andrew: Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) uses industry standard benchmarks, sourced from Willis Towers Watson. DE&S then uses this data to inform and develop its pay policy. The market benchmarks are calculated in the context of 'total reward', which includes base pay, allowances, incentives, pension and other benefits.

Defence Equipment and Support: Pay

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2018 to Question 190411, what the average pay rise was for Defence Equipment and Support staff in each performance category not including any change based on comparison to the market benchmark for a role.

Stuart Andrew: The average pay rise for Defence Equipment and Support staff in 2018 was 2.2%. Salary increases are based on how staff have performed throughout the year and a comparison to the market benchmark for an individual's role. Performance is assessed through a five-box model. The vast majority of people (90%) received a pay rise in the last performance year, with only those who fell into the lowest performance box not receiving a salary increase.Individual salary increases are based on both market benchmarks and performance, with most of the increases in the 1% to 4% range.

Defence Equipment and Support: Staff

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the retention of Defence Equipment and Support employees.

Stuart Andrew: Defence Equipment and Support is currently reviewing staff retention trends and has identified some challenges. An action plan is being developed which will seek to understand the root causes of these trends and improve retention of personnel in identified risk areas.

Defence Equipment and Support: Pay

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what representations Defence Equipment and Support employees have made to his Department on their pay structure introduced in April 2017.

Stuart Andrew: Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) employees have made use of a number of avenues to provide feedback on the organisations pay structure. This includes People Surveys, their Trade Union representatives and Human Resources Business Partners.The DE&S leadership will continue to closely monitor results and trends emerging from this feedback and take action as appropriate.

Syria: Military Intervention

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence,  what estimate he has made of the number of civilians killed in Syria as a result of coalition air strikes in 2018; and how many of the air strikes which resulted in civilian deaths involved British armed forces personnel.

Mark Lancaster: The collection of data on civilian casualties during the campaign by the Global Coalition against Daesh is a matter for the Coalition itself. All missions comply fully with International Humanitarian Law, are meticulously planned and every care is taken to minimise the effect of our military action on civilians and civilian objects. It is therefore deeply regrettable that a UK air strike on 26 March 2018, targeting Daesh fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality. This was reported to the House by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 2 May 2018 (HCWS665). The Ministry of Defence takes any incidence of civilian casualty extremely seriously: we assess the evidence in detail and report back on our findings. We are committed to continuing that practice.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles: Procurement

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress he has made on the procurement of new land platforms (a) MRVP and (b) MIV; and if he will make a statement

Stuart Andrew: The Multi-Role Vehicle - Protected programme is being delivered in two packages. For Package 1, Command, Liaison and Logistic vehicle, the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, manufactured by Oshkosh, has been identified as the preferred option. No final decision has yet been made. For Package 2, Troop Carrying Vehicle and Future Protected Battlefield Ambulances, a competition is on-going and a decision is anticipated in 2019.The Mechanised Infantry Vehicle programme is in the assessment phase, concluding in 2019, with the Ministry of Defence taking forward negotiations via the Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation (OCCAR) to look at options to purchase the vehicles.

Scotland Office

Food Banks: Scotland

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he plans to visit a food bank in December 2018.

David Mundell: I currently have no plans to visit a food bank in my capacity as Secretary of State for Scotland in December 2018.

Department for International Trade

Exports: Cumbria

Trudy Harrison: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps he is taking to support exporters based in Cumbria.

Graham Stuart: Businesses across Cumbria have access to the full range of DIT support. International Trade Advisers from our whole North West team operate throughout the county, deployed according to the specific needs of each customer. This support is also underpinned by our full UK and global network, with DIT teams overseas, sector specialists and the Exporting is GREAT Digital Hub. UK Export Finance (UKEF), the UK’s export credit agency, can also help businesses in Cumbria win, fulfil and get paid for their overseas sales. We encourage and help businesses to start, increase or sustain exporting activity, and this support includes 1-1 advice, trade missions, exhibitions, workshops and other activities. Additionally, free support is available to them from 92 DIT Northern Powerhouse Export Champions. The trade needs of businesses of all sizes in Cumbria will be further addressed through the Export Strategy. This sets out how the government will support businesses to make the most of the opportunities presented by markets around the world. Launched in August 2018, we consulted with over 200 businesses to develop the Strategy, which will see DIT join up across government, with local partners and with the private sector to break down barriers to exporting. The strategy sets out how DIT will Encourage; Inform; Connect; and Finance UK businesses with the potential to export.

Hydrogen: Technology

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps he is taking to promote and export UK skills and technology in hydrogen conversion technologies.

Graham Stuart: DIT has recently added hydrogen technology to its power and renewables portfolio. Work has started to map UK capabilities, identify international opportunities and determine where UK expertise might apply. Once completed, DIT will look at how it can support UK-based hydrogen companies.

Defence: Exports

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimate he has made of the (a) contribution to the public purse from defence exports and (b) the relative contribution of those exports to the defence sector in each year since 1988.

Graham Stuart: The value of UK defence exports (based on orders) from 1988 – 2017 is shown in the table below.Year £BN2017: 92016: 5.92015: 7.742014: 8.482013: 9.782012: 8.82011: 5.382010: 5.832009: 7.262008: 4.342007: 9.652006: 5.52005: 4.022004: 4.562003: 4.882002: 5.122001: 4.112000: 4.681999: 4.841998: 5.941997: 5.541996: 4.641995: 4.861994: 4.191993: 4.541992: 4.51991: 3.421990: 4.371989: 3.441988: 2.77 These figures are taken from the Department for International Trade’s defence and security export statistics, which are published annually on the gov.uk website.

Women and Equalities

Government Equalities Office: Meetings

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, on how many occasions she and Ministers in her Department have had meetings with (a) Mermaids UK, (b) Stonewall and (c) Gendered Intelligence in the last three years.

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, on how many occasions she has had meetings with (a) A Woman's Place, (b) Transgender Trend and (c) Fair Play for Women in the last three years.

Victoria Atkins: Ministers for the Government Equalities Office regularly meet with a wide range of organisations with an interest in equalities. In the past three years this has included organisations like Stonewall and A Woman’s Place UK.Government Equalities Office officials have met over one hundred organisations in the run up to, and during, the publication of the Gender Recognition Act consultation. This includes Mermaids, Stonewall, Gendered Intelligence, A Woman's Place UK, Transgender Trend and Fair Play for Women. Officials have also met other women’s and LGBT groups, refuges and domestic abuse charities, unions, service providers, government departments and other European Governments.

Department for Transport

Railways: Cumbria

Trudy Harrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will assess the potential effect on passengers of the RMT Union's Saturday strikes on the Cumbrian Coast Line service.

Andrew Jones: I share the frustrations of passengers on Northern whose journeys have been repeatedly disrupted by the actions of the RMT. This dispute is not about safety – the independent rail regulator has said driver controlled doors on trains are safe.

Motor Vehicles: Theft

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the costs to haulage companies of theft from commercial vehicles in each of the last three years.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport does not routinely gather data on, or formally assess the economic impacts of, crime against commercial vehicles.

Roads: Freight

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of proposed EU Mobility Package 1 on the (a) posting, (b) driving and (c) rest time of workers in the UK road transport industry.

Chris Grayling: The latest proposals in the EU Mobility Package establish a road transport sector-specific regime for the posting of workers. This is intended to provide an enforceable and proportionate set of rules, based on harmonised administrative requirements for drivers and operators and on information exchange between Member State authorities. The Government’s assessment is that this will reduce administrative burdens that can be placed on UK-based drivers operating abroad. It is also proposed to introduce a limited exemption from posting rules for bilateral international operations. UK-based drivers may therefore in some circumstances be exempt from the prevailing local minimum wage rate while working in other Member States, although this would not be expected to entail a change to their contractual entitlement. The latest proposals in the EU Mobility Package are that the driving and rest time rules would be modified to enable a driver to return to their base at least once every four weeks. In this context, to enable more of a driver’s rest time to be taken at home, it is proposed to enable drivers to take two consecutive reduced weekly rests, provided the reduction is compensated for. The Government considers that these rules would have a very limited effect on UK-based drivers, whose working patterns do not normally entail multiple weeks away from home.

Railways: Tickets

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answers of 1 and 21 November 2018 to Questions 183470 and 191425 on Railways and on Aviation: Fares, what proportion of the UK rail network will be covered by smart ticketing by the end of 2018.

Andrew Jones: I refer the Honourable Member of Parliament for Middlesbrough to the answer to PQ 191425 that I gave last week.

Cross Country Rail Franchise

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answers of 1 and 15 November 2018 to Questions 183468 and 188838 on Cross Country Rail franchise, what assessment he has made of the effect on levels of (a) overcrowding, (b) capacity and (c) congestion on that route of the Government's decision to review its options for the Cross Country franchise.

Andrew Jones: Analysis, undertaken on the Cross Country network, has shown that from Mondays to Thursdays, Cross Country trains are extremely busy in the morning and evening peak. On Fridays, crowding on Cross Country trains starts from lunchtime onwards and, on some routes, extends into the late evening. In addition Cross Country has unique issues, in that it suffers from commuter traffic even though it is a long distance TOC which accounts for current pinch points. The Department is working with the franchisee to reduce overcrowding, increase capacity and ease congestion.

Heathrow Airport: Railways

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish the results of the market sounding exercise for a southern rail link to Heathrow announced on 13 June 2018.

Andrew Jones: Earlier this year the Department undertook market testing. This is the first step in the development of Southern Access and will inform the further work required before any decision on whether to and, if so, how this scheme will be progressed. A summary of responses will be published in due course.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Sir Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to provide funding for investment in quieter road surfacing.

Jesse Norman: It is Highways England policy to install standard low noise surfacing on all new road links, and on all road links where the existing surfacing has reached the end of its service life where particular durability is not required. In all, Highways England have installed over 6,000 miles of standard low noise surfacing between 1 April 2015 and 30 September 2018. The Department is also providing over £6.6 billion to local highway authorities in England from 2015 to 2021 to improve the condition of local roads, including in residential areas. The funding includes £420 million for local highways maintenance, as announced in the Budget 2018. It is for each highway authority to determine the type of surfacing to use on the roads for which they are responsible based on their own local assessments and requirements.

Railways

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what (a) targets and (b) forecasts his Department has made of rail (i) passenger and (ii) freight growth by 2030.

Andrew Jones: The Department does not set general targets for rail demand growth. Our latest forecasts for rail passenger demand were published in the 2017 High-level Output Specification: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-level-output-specification-2017. Network Rail’s latest proposed forecasts for rail freight are published here: https://cdn.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Rail-freight-forecasts-final-report.pdf. Both sets of forecasts are for the final financial year of control period 6 (2023/24).

Railways: Tickets

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps his Department has taken to expand the Oyster card system beyond London.

Andrew Jones: We have invested £80m so that passengers have a smart option for almost all journeys across the network by the end of the year; this is in addition to our £150 million commitment to smart ticketing in the North. Our goal is to ensure that across regional and urban commuter areas smart ticketing is able to deliver the kind of pay as you go structure used in London.

Aviation

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure that the aviation industry can continue without disruption after the UK leaves the EU.

Chris Grayling: The Government and EU have agreed the text of a Withdrawal Agreement which includes provision for a transition or implementation period after we leave the EU. During this period flights will continue as now. We have also agreed a Political Declaration on the broad terms of our future relationship with the EU. This confirms that the future relationship for aviation will be set out in a Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement which will provide for market access for UK and EU airlines.

Bus Services

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to replace the service on a bus route when an operator removes it; and if he will make a statement.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The bus market in England, outside London, is deregulated and most services are provided on a commercial basis by private operators. Where there is not enough demand for a bus route to be commercially viable in its own right all local authorities have powers to subsidise bus services. Local bus services have to be registered with the Traffic Commissioner. When an operator wants to vary or cancel a registered bus service it must provide relevant local authorities with a copy of the application at least 28 days before it makes the application to the Traffic Commissioner. Once the application has been submitted to the Traffic Commissioner the service can be varied or cancelled after 42 days, or less in certain prescribed circumstances if agreed by the Traffic Commissioner. This system provides local authorities with time to consider the implications of a service variation or cancellation and in particular whether they wish to procure and subsidise a replacement service.

Electric Vehicles

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he made an assessment of the potential effect of reducing incentives for plug-in hybrid and electric cars on the number of purchases of those vehicles before taking the decision to reduce those incentives.

Jesse Norman: Since 2011, the plug-in car grant has provided a discount to the price of over 170,000 cars, and disbursed over £0.7 billion to support the early market for ultra low emission vehicles. Based on internal assessments made before the change to grant rates in October 2018, we expect sales of ultra low emission cars to continue at similar levels in 2019 to those seen in 2018.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Burma: Rohingya

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 November to Question 186916, how much time he plans to give the Burmese Commission of Inquiry into Rakhine State to deliberate and report before he makes a judgement on whether it is independent and credible.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary has set out to State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi his expectations that the Commission of Inquiry must be independent, credible and result in a judicial process. As the Commission of Inquiry proceeds through its mandated period of operation of one year, we will be assessing whether it is meeting these expectations in consultation with international partners. At the same time the UK will be working to maximise international support and Burmese engagement with the collect and preserve mechanism established by the UK-supported UN Human Rights Council Resolution of 27 September, and other accountability mechanisms.

Burma: Human Rights

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the recommendation made by Business for Social Responsibility in its report Human Rights Impact Assessment: Facebook in Myanmar of October 2018, what discussions he has had with representatives of Facebook on the potential publication by that company of annual reports on its human rights impacts.

Mark Field: ​While the British Embassy in Burma maintains regular contact with Facebook's representatives for Burma, it has not discussed with them publication by their company of annual reports on its human rights impacts. The Government's position on Facebook's activity in Burma is set out in its 23 October response to the Interim Report of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee on 'Disinformation and 'Fake News' (HC 1630 17/19).

Burma: Human Rights

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the recommendations made by the Business for Social Responsibility in its report entitled Human Rights Impact Assessment: Facebook in Myanmar published in October 2018, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of Facebook on potential steps by that company to assist (a) with the collection of evidence by international mechanisms created to investigate violations of international human rights in Myanmar and (b) civil society organisations in that country in raising awareness of opportunities for victims of human rights abuses to access remedies.

Mark Field: The British Embassy in Burma maintains regular contact with Facebook's representatives for Burma. The UK worked closely with international partners to secure the UN Human Rights Council Resolution on Burma of 27 September which establishes a collect and preserve mechanism. This is designed to support future prosecutions. The UK will encourage any party with credible evidence of human rights violations to share it with the mechanism.

Facebook

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Facebook’s credible violence policy in tackling misinformation with the potential to contribute to imminent violence or physical harm in (a) Myanmar and (b) other countries.

Mark Field: The Government welcomed Facebook's decision to remove accounts and ban individuals and organisations following the publication of the UN Fact-Finding Mission report. However the Government has made it clear to Facebook, and other social media companies, that they must do more to remove illegal and harmful content.

Social Media: Hate Crime

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of Facebook on the use of Whatsapp in the spread of hate speech in (a) Myanmar and (b) other countries.

Mark Field: The British Embassy in Burma maintains regular contact with Facebook's representatives covering Burma. The Government's position on Facebook's activity in Burma is set out in its 23 October response to the Interim Report of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee on 'Disinformation and 'Fake News' (HC 1630 17/19).

Sri Lanka: Social Media

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the role of (a) Facebook, (b) WhatsApp and (c) other social media platforms in contributing to recent incidents of intercommunal violence in Sri Lanka.

Mark Field: I was deeply concerned by reports of anti-Muslim violence in Sri Lanka in February and March 2018 and wrote to Foreign Minister Marapana on 7 March setting out these views.President Sirisena declared a State of Emergency between 6 and 17 of March, and placed restrictions on some social media platforms, out of concern that extremists were using these platforms to inflame the situation. I understand that the Government of Sri Lanka has opened a dialogue with Facebook to ensure that effective action is taken against those who spread hate speech online. We support that approach. We have urged the Government of Sri Lanka to take effective law enforcement measures against those involved in the violence.The United Kingdom has made a long-term commitment to improving human rights in Sri Lanka and is dedicated to supporting the rebuilding of the country after three decades of civil conflict. The UK is providing Sri Lanka with £8.3 million of Conflict, Stability and Security Fund funding over three years (2016-2019). I met with the Head of Tamil National Alliance and Foreign Minister during my October visit to Sri Lanka. We discussed many bilateral issues, including the implementation of the UN Human Rights Council Resolution 34/1 and inter-communal violence. It is vital that all leaders in Sri Lanka condemn violence and hate, and make every effort to promote harmony.

India: Social Media

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the role of (a) Facebook, (b) WhatsApp and (c) other social media platforms in contributing to recent incidents of intercommunal violence in India.

Mark Field: We are aware that some social media platforms have been used in India and elsewhere to contribute to violent acts. Intercommunal violence is never acceptable, whether or not driven by social media. We continue to work with different groups in India to examine the challenges posed by fake news, which can be a contributing factor to this type of violence. Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's India Network and central teams in London monitor closely reports of human rights abuses, raising issues where appropriate with the Government of India. We are in regular contact with minority representatives in India as well as human rights activists and NGOs.​

Afghanistan: Elections

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Afghanistan on concerns on the electoral process in that country identified by (a) the Afghan Independent Election Commission, (b) the Afghan Independent Electoral Complaints Commission and (c) international election observers in relation to the parliamentary election held on 20 and 21 October 2018.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of Afghan voters prevented from casting their ballot in the parliamentary election of 20 and 21 October 2018 as a result of the closure of polling stations in parts of that country.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications of the conduct of the parliamentary election held in Afghanistan on 20 and 21 October 2018 on the prospects for ensuring that the forthcoming presidential election in that country is conducted in a free, fair and credible manner.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Afghanistan on the potential postponement of the presidential election due to take place in that country in April 2019.

Mark Field: We welcome the fact that the recent parliamentary elections represented the first Afghan-led and secured election since 2001. We are aware of the various operational challenges that disrupted voting, including some 2,255 polling centres unable to register voters earlier in the year and the some 261 which did not open on election day. These closures were largely owing to security and operational challenges. In spite of challenges, 95% of polling centres which planned to conduct elections did so, with over 4 million Afghans casting their ballots.We are working with partners to encourage the Independent Election Commission to ensure transparency in publishing results of the parliamentary elections. We have emphasised the need for a credible timeline and operational plan to deliver presidential elections in 2019. When the Prime Minister spoke to the President of Afghanistan most recently on 7 November, they discussed the need to learn lessons from the October elections and implement reforms ahead of the 2019 presidential vote.

Afghanistan: Peace Negotiations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in (a) the US and (b) Afghanistan on negotiations between the US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation and members of the Taliban held in Qatar in October and November 2018.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the level of involvement of representatives of the Government of Afghanistan in negotiations between the US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation and members of the Taliban held in Qatar in October and November 2018.

Mark Field: ​The UK welcomed the appointment of US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad. His wide-ranging engagement is important in supporting and facilitating an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned political process.

Afghanistan: Peace Negotiations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the outcomes of the international conference on the Afghan peace process held in Moscow on 9 November 2018.

Mark Field: ​We believe that the conflict in Afghanistan requires a political solution that must be Afghan-owned and Afghan-led. We welcome regional initiatives designed to support this aim, if coordinated with the Afghan government. The Afghan government did not send official representation. The meeting in Moscow on 9 November was an independent Russian initiative.

Afghanistan: Ethnic Groups

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the threats posed to Hazaras in Afghanistan by attacks against their communities by Taliban fighters; and what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Afghanistan on such threats.

Mark Field: We are concerned by reports of civilian casualties and displacement resulting from recent Taliban attacks in districts predominantly populated by Hazaras. We continue to monitor the situation closely, especially in Ghazni and Uruzgan districts. We understand that the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces are working to stabilise the security situation in both provinces.The British Government continues to urge all parties to the conflict in Afghanistan to respect International Humanitarian Law, protect the civilian population and facilitate the provision of assistance by neutral and impartial humanitarian agencies. We urge the Government of Afghanistan to protect the rights of all ethnic and religious groups, including the Hazaras, in line with the Afghan constitution.

Papua: Measles

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Indonesia Government on vaccinations for measles in West Papua after an outbreak in that province killed at least 100 children in 2018.

Mark Field: Officials at our Embassy in Jakarta, including the Ambassador, visit Papua regularly. During these visits, they consistently press the Indonesian authorities to address legitimate concerns and ensure the sustainable and equitable development of the province. This includes access to healthcare.

Iran: Detainees

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UK dual nationals have been detained in Iran in each year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: ​We do not provide information about numbers of British nationals detained in a country when the low numbers involved may lead to individuals being identifiable.

Somaliland: Politics and Government

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Somaliland on (a) security in that region and (b) the Somaliland's future sovereignty.

Harriett Baldwin: I discussed security with President Musa Bihi during my 7 October visit to Hargeisa. Somaliland has a crucial role in combatting the threat from terrorism in the region. The UK provides a range of assistance to Somaliland, including to enhance Somaliland's capability to disrupt terrorist threats, gather evidence and make arrests based on respect for human rights and the rule of law. The UK also supports Somaliland's efforts to contribute to security in the region through engagement with the police, judiciary and civil society.We remain concerned about clashes earlier this year near the town of Tukareq, and we strongly encourage leaders on all sides to resolve disputes peacefully and engage with the mediation process led by the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD).The UK does not recognise Somaliland's declaration of independence. Our long-standing position remains that it is for Somalis themselves to reach an agreement on Somaliland's status through dialogue, and for countries in the region to lead on recognising the outcome of this dialogue.

Raed Fares and Hamoud Jneed

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of which individuals or groups were responsible for the assassination of Raed Fares and Hamoud Jneed in Idlib, Syria on 23 November 2018.

Alistair Burt: We condemn the murder of Raed al-Fares and Hamoud Jnaid in Idlib on 23 November, a reminder of the serious dangers faced by independent media activists in Syria. Given the difficulties of gathering information inside Syria, we are not in a position to assess who was responsible. ​

Saudi Arabia: Official Visits

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2018 to Question 192866, and without asking him to comment on individual immigration cases, how many of the 17 Saudi officials and agents subjected to Magnitsky sanctions by the United States on 15 November 2018 were among the entourage who accompanied Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman on his visit to the UK in April 2018.

Alistair Burt: We are not able to comment on individual cases.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, for what reason the UK’s draft United States Security Council resolution on Yemen was not formally tabled in the week commencing 19 November 2018 as originally intended; and on what date he now expects the resolution to be formally tabled.

Alistair Burt: We are fully focussed on bringing an end to hostilities in Yemen to address the worsening humanitarian crisis and build a lasting political solution. Diplomacy and negotiation remain the only path to ending the conflict.The indications are that both sides will come to Stockholm in the coming days for meaningful talks hosted by the UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths. We encourage both sides to engage constructively and in good faith to overcome obstacles and find a political solution to end the conflict.A UN Security Council resolution is one of the means we are pursuing in order to achieve a lasting political and humanitarian solution. Discussions on the resolution are ongoing and we will put it to a vote at the point that best delivers for the people of Yemen.We are determined to use the window of opportunity before us to make progress towards ending the conflict in Yemen.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the version of the draft UN Security Council resolution on Yemen which he discussed with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman of Saudi Arabia on 12 November 2018 contained a reference to the investigation of alleged violations of international humanitarian law in Yemen; and if he will place a copy of that version of the draft resolution in the Library.

Alistair Burt: We take reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) by actors in the conflict very seriously. We regularly raise the importance of compliance with IHL with the Saudi Arabian Government and other members of the Coalition. The Joint Incidents Assessment Team (JIAT) is the Coalition mechanism for investigating allegations of IHL violations. On Monday 12 November, the Foreign Secretary held constructive talks with the senior leadership of Saudi Arabia addressing the importance of respect for IHL, and the need for an urgent end to the conflict in Yemen, and a swift improvement in the dire humanitarian situation. We have circulated a draft resolution to the UN Security Council, however as is standard practice, a copy of the draft will not be placed in the Library.

Palestinians: Human Rights

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Human Rights Watch's report entitled Two Authorities, One Way, what support his Department provides to civic society groups in the West Bank whose abuse by the Palestinian Authority has been detailed in that report.

Alistair Burt: The UK continues to support civil society groups who are non-violently resisting the occupation. The UK funded a project in the 2017/2018 financial year which supported civil society to advocate changes to the Press and Publication Law. This amended law is currently at its third reading in the Palestinian Authority (PA) Cabinet and we continue to push for its adoption. The Human Rights Watch report has made some serious and concerning allegations about human rights violations by the PA and we have raised our concerns with the Palestinian Ministry of Interior. Officials from our Consulate-General in Jerusalem continue to urge the PA to respect human rights, and have stressed the need to ensure freedom of speech, association and assembly.

Palestinians: Freedom of Expression

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect freedom of speech in the Palestinian Territories.

Alistair Burt: Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, and the UK is strongly committed to protecting and promoting the right to lawful freedom of speech. We have concerns about increasing restrictions on freedom of expression, and the narrowing of the space for civil society to operate, in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Officials from our Consulate-General in Jerusalem continue to raise these concerns with the Palestinian Authority.

Philippines: Religious Freedom

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Government of the Philippines on religious freedom in that country.

Mark Field: ​The UK is committed to the promotion of human rights, including freedom of religion and belief. Whilst we have not held specific discussions with the Philippine Government on religious freedoms, we have had regular discussions on human rights, including raising our concerns about the "war on drugs" and the treatment of human rights defenders. My officials most recently met with their Philippine counterparts at the UK/Philippines High Level talks that took place on 19th November, where these issues were raised.

Central America: Immigrants

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in the (a) US Administration and (b) Mexican Government on the human rights of Central American migrants.

Sir Alan Duncan: We continue to monitor developments on migrants from Central America transiting Mexico and are in contact with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) which is providing support and funding. Officials in our Embassy in Mexico have also met with the local Mexican State Human Rights Commission on the border with Guatemala and discussed the protection of human rights for migrants.

Central America: Immigrants

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in the US Administration on reports that tear gas has been used by US border officers to repel migrants at the US-Mexico border.

Sir Alan Duncan: There have been no specific FCO Ministerial discussions on the use of tear gas at the US border.

Central America: Human Rights

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in Central America on human rights.

Sir Alan Duncan: Human rights is regularly on the agenda of bilateral meetings with Central American counterparts. Our Embassies across Central America monitor human rights situations closely and raise our concerns with respective Central American Governments, working closely with EU and like-minded partners. Our particular focus in recent months has been Nicaragua. I met the Nicaraguan Minister for National Policies on 3 July, urging the government to take responsibility for putting an end to the violence in the country, and issued a statement on 24 July; and on 19 October the Head of Latin America Department and the British Ambassador met the Foreign Minister & Vice-Foreign Minister in Managua to express our concerns about human rights abuses in the country.

Department for Education

Healthy Pupils Capital Fund

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department plans to publish a report on how the Healthy Pupils Capital Fund has been spent by schools.

Nadhim Zahawi: Existing mechanisms for school condition funding are being used to report on Healthy Pupils Capital Fund (HPCF) expenditure. We plan to collect data on HPCF spend during 2018/19 in 2019 and include it in our published report on capital spend by local authorities and multi- academy trusts on the school estate, which will be published in 2020.Successful HPCF projects funded through the Condition Improvement Fund 2018-19 have been published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/condition-improvement-fund-2018-to-2019-outcome.

TBAP Multi-academy Trust: Cambridge

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 16 November 2018 to Question 188842 on TBAP Multi-academy Trust: Cambridge, on how many days that residential property was occupied.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) is not aware of how many days the residential property in Cambridge was occupied. The ESFA understands that the property was the subject of a six-month agreement from March 2016, however due to underutilisation, the TBAP Trust negotiated an early termination date of 26 May 2016.

TBAP Multi-academy Trust: Pensions

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 16 November 2018 to Question 188841 on TBAP Multi-academy Trust: Pensions, whether an assessment has been made of the effect on employee pension pots of those earlier non-payments into that pension fund.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Education and Skills Funding Agency does not hold information as to whether the delay in payments from TBAP to the local authority resulted in late payments to the pension fund and it does not hold information as to whether such an assessment has been undertaken by TBAP or the local authority.

Teachers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of changes in the time allocated to teachers for planning, preparation and assessment.

Nick Gibb: All teachers who participate in the teaching of pupils are entitled to reasonable periods of Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA). PPA time must amount to not less than 10% of the teacher’s timetabled teaching time. A teacher must not be required to carry out any other duties during the teacher’s PPA time.There have been no changes in the time allocated to teachers for planning, preparation and assessment: this requirement has been in place since 2004.The Department continues to work with unions, teachers and Ofsted to challenge and remove unnecessary workload so that teachers can focus on tasks which make the most positive impact on their pupils. For example, a workload reduction toolkit has been published which provides schools with practical tools and evidence-based solutions to enable them to streamline practice in their schools. This includes a section on reviewing curriculum planning with case studies on how schools have successfully reduced workload associated with planning.The workload reduction toolkit can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/workload-reduction-toolkit.

Teachers

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of qualified teachers working in (a) academies, (b) free schools, (c) city technology colleges and (d) private schools.

Nick Gibb: The following table provides the full-time equivalent number of teachers with qualified teacher status in service in academies, free schools, and city technology colleges in England in November 2017. The number of teachers in private schools that have qualified teacher status is not held centrally. Full-Time Equivalent Qualified Teachers[1]Academies[2][3]197,840Free Schools[2]5,420City Technology Colleges[2]230Independent Schools[4]. The figures for academies and free schools are publicly available in table 3a within the publication ‘School Workforce in England, November 2017’, available at the following web link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-workforce-in-england-november-2017. [1] Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 teachers.[2] Source: School workforce census.[3] Includes university technical colleges and studio schools.[4] Source: Independent school census. Figures for teachers in independent schools with qualified teacher status are not collected.

Church Commissioners

Gambling

Eddie Hughes: To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to tackle problem gambling.

Dame Caroline Spelman: In 2017 the Church of England’s General Synod passed a unanimous motion calling on Government to reduce the stakes on fixed-odds betting terminals to £2.00. This is an issue on which bishops, most notably the Bishop of St Albans, have spoken frequently on and campaigned for. The Church has therefore welcomed the Government’s announcement of the reduction in stakes, and the decision to implement the change in April 2019, as well as the increase in Remote Gaming Duty. The Bishop of St Albans continues to spearhead the Church’s activity in this area and has recently raised in the House of Lords the high quantity of gambling advertisements, increases in child gambling, the voluntary levy paid by gambling firms, and the socio-economic cost to society of problem gambling.

Community Development

Rehman Chishti: To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent steps the Church of England has taken at parish level to support the needs of local communities.

Dame Caroline Spelman: This year the Church of England surveyed its 16,000 parish churches about their involvement in social action and local community projects. Of the 13,000 churches that responded the survey revealed that 80% were involved in providing services for the benefit of their local communities, either standalone or in partnership with others. These 33,000 projects included debt counselling, lunch clubs, language classes, food banks, children’s clubs, community cafes, holiday and breakfast clubs and night shelters.There are many good examples of work in the Rochester Diocese, 11 of the 12 Church of England churches within the Gillingham deanery (which covers the Gillingham and Rainham constituency) are involved in providing on average at least 4 different projects to support the wider local community.The areas in which the churches in Gillingham deanery are engaging is as follows:10 churches provide or support a Foodbank8 churches operate a parent/carer and toddler group7 churches operate a night shelter or other homeless provision6 churches provide pastoral provision for wider community through operating street pastors groups, counselling/support, tackling loneliness projects5 churches operate Youth projects (for the wider community)4 churches provide a Lunch club or drop in service.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Air Pollution: Children

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect children from the effect of toxic air on their health in (a) Oxford West and Abingdon constituency and (b) England.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra’s Air Quality Grant Programme provides funding to local authorities for projects in local communities to tackle air pollution and reduce emissions affecting schools, businesses and residents. Local authorities have a duty to monitor and assess air quality and to take action to reduce pollution where these breach statutory limits, and are best placed to determine local priorities. Through the 2017-18 Air Quality Grant, we provided Oxford City Council with £192,500 to provide Electric vehicle charging points, and electric fleet. In 2017, Oxford City Council were provided with £370,000 of funding from the Department for Transport for charge points for taxis. Defra awarded a total of £2.4million to local authorities in England from the 2017/18 air quality grant fund; £3.7million was awarded in 2016/17, and £0.5million in 2015/6. £3million has been allocated for 2018/19. Whilst all measures which reduce air pollution will reduce children’s exposure to these harmful pollutants, some projects have elements that are specifically targeted at children. For example: In 2016-17, the London Borough of Islington were awarded £50,000 to run a local school focused awareness and engagement campaign through the air quality grant.In 2017/18, Spelthorne Borough Council were given £145,188 to run an awareness campaign in schools across Surrey.Details of further funding from the Air Quality Grant Programme, including funding specifically directed at children can be found on the Air Quality Grant Programme webpage here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/air-quality-grant-programme. The Government has also put in place a £3.5billion plan to improve air quality and reduce harmful emissions, which includes £495million for councils to improve air quality. We have consulted on our new world leading Clean Air Strategy, which includes new and ambitious goals, legislation, investment and policies which will help us to clean up our air faster and more effectively.

Beverage Containers: Recycling

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has estimated the cost of introducing a deposit return scheme for single-use drinks containers.

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the proposed deposit return scheme on small retailers.

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has assessed the potential merits of exempting small retailers from the deposit return scheme.

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of the effect of deposit return schemes on (a) health and safety and (b) hygiene in the retail sector.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government will shortly launch its consultation on the introduction of a deposit return scheme (DRS) in England. An impact assessment will be published alongside the consultation, which assesses the social and economic costs and benefits of introducing a DRS, including the impact that a DRS will have on small retailers.   Consideration for small retailers will be included in our consultation. We will also take into account the wider effects of a DRS on the retail sector when we consult.

Air Pollution: Urban Areas

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce levels of air pollution to legal limits in major cities.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK continues to meet all current international air quality limits except for NO2. In July 2017 we published the NO2 Plan, backed by £3.5 billion funding, which sets out the steps we are taking to comply with NO2 limits as soon as possible. We are working intensively with local authorities, to identify measures to swiftly bring forward compliance, and support them with guidance and funding. This includes major cities outside London which are exceeding NO2 limits. The Mayor of London has devolved responsibility for air quality in London and has received substantial grants through the TFL grant and other grants to support improvements to modes of transport to improve air quality.

Air Pollution: Children

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect children from the effects of air pollution.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Stockton North, Alex Cunningham, on 27 November 2018, PQ UIN192868.

Animals: Diseases

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to establish contingency plans for farmers in the event of an animal disease outbreak.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish his contingency plans for farmers in the event of an outbreak of animal disease.

George Eustice: The Defra Contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals in England was presented to Parliament on 27 November 2018 and is available on the GOV.UK website. The Plan is regularly tested through local and national exercises.

Air Pollution: Children

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding his Department has allocated to programmes to reduce children’s exposure to air pollution in (a) 2015-16; (b) 2016-17; and (c) 2017-18; and whether he has made an assessment of the effectiveness of those schemes.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Stockton North, Alex Cunningham, on 27 November 2018, PQ UIN192868.

Food Supply

Thelma Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has put in place to ensure an adequate food supply for the UK in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal; and whether those plans include stockpiling.

David Rutley: Defra is preparing for our departure from the EU and is working alongside other relevant government departments. We are also engaging closely with businesses and trade associations across the food and drink sector at ministerial and official levels. The UK has a high degree of food security built on access to diverse sources of supply as well as domestic production. While we are making sensible preparations for all eventualities as we leave the EU, there are no plans to stockpile food. The Government has already carried out significant ‘no deal’ preparations and has published a series of technical notices on GOV.UK so that businesses and citizens have time to prepare.

Transport: Noise

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November to Question 191429 on Transport: Noise, what the timeframe is for publication of the response to the consultation on the Noise Action Plans.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Consultation on the draft Noise Action Plans for Roads, Railways and Agglomerations (large urban areas) closed on 15 November. Responses are currently being evaluated. The Government will aim to publish a summary of responses alongside the final version of the Action Plans in early 2019.

Reservoirs: Abingdon

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with (a) Thames Water, (b) Ofwat and (c) other local stakeholders on the proposed Abingdon Reservoir in Thames Water’s draft Water Resources Management Plan 2019.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will hold discussions with Ofwat on the merits of commissioning an independent audit of Thames Water’s costs options for that company's draft Water Resources Management Plan 2019.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will ask Ofwat to publish an assessment of Thames Water’s costs estimates for the proposed Abingdon Reservoir.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the accuracy of cost options for the (a) large schemes (b) alternative water transfer proposed in Thames Water’s draft Water Resources Management Plan 2019.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with Ofwat on Thames Water’s cost estimate for the proposed Abingdon Reservoir.

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent estimate he has made of the additional costs to Thames Water consumers of the construction of the proposed Abingdon reservoir.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Secretary of State will consider and make decisions on the draft water resources management plan, following both Thames Water’s consultation and advice from the Environment Agency (EA). Ofwat will also scrutinise Thames Water’s published proposals to make sure they offer customers value for money through the price review process.   Defra, Ofwat and the EA discussed with Thames Water the need for further consultation on its draft plan, following the previous consultation earlier this year. Thames Water has now published a statement of response, which explains the views expressed in its original consultation and the reasons for it deciding to carry out further consultation on its draft plan.

Special Protection Areas: Seas and Oceans

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps (a) his Department and (b) agencies of his Department have taken to undertake a review of the adequacy of the UK Special Protection Area network at sea.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra and the Devolved Administrations have undertaken to assess the adequacy of the UK’s network of marine special protection areas after the current programme of designation of those areas is complete in 2019. The Joint Nature Conservation Committee and the statutory nature conservation bodies in each country have already started work on developing the methodology to undertake that assessment.

Farmers

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the farming community on start-ups and co-operatives.

George Eustice: Ministers and officials have regular discussions with farming stakeholders about a range of topics, including matters relating to start-ups and co-operatives.   In September 2018 the government published a Policy Statement, alongside the introduction of the Agriculture Bill. This statement included a series of proposals to create more opportunities for new farmers, and plans for continuing to encourage collaboration between agricultural producers after we have left the Common Agricultural Policy.

Air Pollution: Children

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with external stakeholders on the effect of air pollution on child health.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra ministers and officials meet stakeholders regularly to engage on the wide range of issues regarding air quality. I have hosted a number of roundtable discussions in preparing the draft Clean Air Strategy, meeting with a wide range of organisations representing public health interests, including the World Health Organisation (WHO), to discuss health impacts from particulate matter and how these could be reduced, and how we can improve the information provided about air pollution, forecasts and health impacts.   Officials continue regular engagement with a wide range of these organisations during and after the consultation on the draft Clean Air Strategy, and are pursuing a number of ideas for joint working on improving communications about health and pollution, including child health.

Air Pollution: Children

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to conduct or support any studies into the effect of air pollution on child health.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This is a devolved matter.   Defra does not fund studies into the effect of air pollution on child health as this falls more in the remit of bodies such as the Department of Health and Social Care or Public Health England.   We have consulted on our new Clean Air Strategy, which sets out how we are investing £10 million in improving our modelling, data and analytical tools to give a more precise picture of current and future air quality and the impact of policies to improve it in the future. We will continue to work in collaboration with research councils who are funding a large programme of research on air pollution.

Hedgehogs: Conservation

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish an action plan on hedgehog conservation.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government has published advice on how to help hedgehogs through the creation of hedgehog havens and making gardens as welcoming as possible. This can be accessed at: www.gov.uk/government/news/five-simple-steps-to-transform-gardens-in-to-hedgehog-havens We support the excellent work being undertaken by the British Hedgehog Preservation Society and the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, such as the Hedgehog Street campaign and their Conservation Strategy for Hedgehogs which sets out a ten year approach to supporting this species. Natural England is taking action to address some of the objectives in this strategy. As set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan, we are committed to creating or restoring 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat to provide benefits for species such as the hedgehog. Agri-environment schemes such as Countryside Stewardship provide funding to restore, extend and link important habitats and boost food resources for a range of species including hedgehogs.

Hedgehogs: Conservation

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will (a) publish a response to EDM 1297 on banning A24 traps that kill hedgehogs and (b) make an assessment of the potential merits of withdrawing the licence for A24 rat traps that kill hedgehogs.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I have previously responded to the issue raised in EDM 1297 in PQ 138359 17/19 and also directly with various members of Parliament via ministerial correspondence. The trap is not approved for trapping hedgehogs. We are confident that hedgehogs can be effectively and safely excluded from the Goodnature A24 trap when it is set according to manufacturer’s instructions and an excluder tunnel is (as required by law) used. We are also not aware of any evidence which suggests the A24 trap and excluder tunnels used with it have had any significant impact on hedgehog numbers since its approval. The use of traps is an important tool in wildlife management, which benefits conservation and a range of economic activities from shooting and agriculture to forestry and eco-tourism. Approving new, more humane and selective trap designs benefits wildlife by improving the welfare of trapped animals and the safety of non-target species.

Trade Agreements

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for International Trade on setting environmental and animal welfare standards for future trade deals.

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for International Trade on setting environmental and animal welfare standards for future trade deals.

George Eustice: Ministers and officials from Defra meet regularly with their counterparts in the Department for International Trade to discuss a wide range of trade issues.

Foxes: Imports

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many silver foxes have been imported into the UK from other EU countries in the last five years; and under what regulatory regime those foxes were imported.

David Rutley: Foxes would be imported into Great Britain under one of two regulations: The Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974 (as amended) (RIO). Council Directive 92/65/EEC The Animal and Plant Health Agency are required to issue an import licence for foxes imported under the Rabies Importation Order or a Quarantine Waiver under Council Directive 92/65/EEC. APHA have not issued any licences or waivers under the two aforementioned regulations for the period 2015 – 2018.

Foxes: Imports

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether it is mandatory for silver foxes imported for the pet trade to be quarantined in an approved quarantine centre.

David Rutley: All foxes covered by Schedule 1, Part II of The Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974 (as amended) will require a licence under the Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974 and must spend 4 months in quarantine unless they are exempted from quarantine. Waivers from quarantine would only be granted if animals were moving from a premises approved in accordance with Article 13 and Annex C of Council Directive 92/65/EEC Foxes are not part of the Pet Travel Scheme and therefore would not be permitted to move between Member States under the scheme.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Disability: Impact Assessments

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what impact assessments have been conducted by the Government on the effect of the UK leaving the EU on the disabled community as a protected characteristic.

Mr Robin Walker: During the passage of the EU (Withdrawal) Act 2018 in the Commons the Government committed to providing a statement about the impact of all EU exit bills on equalities legislation (which includes provisions on disability as a protected characteristic). The Government’s commitment requires the relevant Minister to make and publish a statement for each EU exit bill indicating:a. whether the bill amends, repeals or revokes any part of the Equality Acts 2006 or 2010 or any secondary legislation made under those Acts and, if it does make such changes, an explanation of the effect of each change; andb. that in relation to the policy which is given effect by the Bill, the relevant Minister “has had due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under the Equality Act 2010.”c. The Government will be making such a statement in respect of the WAB (which will be set out in the Explanatory Notes accompanying the Bill on its introduction); and this analysis has been carried out to inform decision-making on the Withdrawal Agreement and as preparation for the equality statement.The UK Government is committed to ensuring that there is no regression inequalities as we leave the EU. The Equality Act 2010 sets out wide-ranging equalities protections, and incorporates virtually all existing EU equalities law and Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) case law. In some areas, domestic legislation goes further than EU requirements - for example the public sector equality duty, which places a proactive duty on public authorities to consider how their policies or decisions would affect people who are protected under the Equality Act. There are also domestic requirements that ensure non-discrimination in access to goods and services on grounds of disability.The Withdrawal Agreement also sets out a commitment to 'no diminution of rights, safeguards or equality of opportunity' in Northern Ireland, as set out in the Rights, Safeguards and Equality of Opportunity Chapter of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement, results from the UK's withdrawal from the EU. A dedicated mechanism will be put in place to ensure this process.

Wales Office

Wales Office: Data Protection

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many data breaches occurred in his Department in each of the last three years for which data is available.

Nigel Adams: None.

Wales Office: Pensions

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what percentage of staff employed in his Department make voluntary pension contributions; and whether his Department supports that practice.

Nigel Adams: The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales is not an employer in its own right. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) provide employment services on our behalf. As of 31 October, 100% of staff on MoJ payroll on assignment to the Department made voluntary pension contributions. MoJ supports voluntary pension contributions through Civil Service Pensions.

Embassies: Cardiff

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions he has had with overseas diplomats about the merits of locating a consulate in Cardiff.

Alun Cairns: I have regular meetings with overseas diplomats to discuss opportunities to strengthen links between Wales and countries across the globe as the UK leaves the European Union. This engagement supports my ambition for an outward looking Wales as part of a truly global Britain.

Wales Office: Nurseries

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many of his Department's offices have childcare facilities onsite.

Nigel Adams: There are no on-site childcare facilities provided by the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales on its estate. However, the Department recognises that staff need flexible pre-school and out-of-school childcare of a type and in a location most convenient to them. The Office is not an employer, with all staff employed by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The MoJ offers a salary sacrifice scheme for childcare vouchers which enables staff to choose their own childcare provider (subject to meeting eligibility requirements) and have their childcare costs reduced by taking part of their salary in the form of childcare vouchers, which are exempt from tax and National Insurance contributions. We also follow MoJ polices by offering a range of flexible working options to staff, including term-time working, job shares and compressed hours, to allow staff with caring responsibilities to work in the way that best suits them.

Wales Office: Sick Leave

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what estimate he has made of the number of days lost due to staff absences in his Department as a result of (a) physical ill health, (b) mental ill health, (c) stress and (d) anxiety disorders in each of the last five years.

Nigel Adams: The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales is not an employer in its own right. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) provides employment services on our behalf, including collection of absence data. The physical and mental wellbeing of our staff is crucially important to the department and staff have access to all MoJ employee services that help to sustain physical and mental wellbeing, including Occupational Health and a 24-hour employee assistance helpline. The information below outlines the number of days lost due to staff absences as a result of (a) physical ill health, (b) mental ill health, (c) stress and (d) anxiety disorders. MoJ categorise stress and anxiety disorders as mental ill health. We have therefore extracted the relevant data from (b) and recorded these in (c) and (d) below. Please note that this data is collected by calendar year and therefore data is not yet available for 2018.  Number of working days lost due to:Calendar Year (a) physical ill health(b) mental ill health,(c) stress(d) anxiety disorders2017128045201627.50210201569039020141350002013289402730

EU Grants and Loans: Wales

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what the largest EU funded projects in Wales were in each of the last 10 years.

Alun Cairns: Details of the projects in Wales funded by the European Union in the last ten years are available at the following addresses: 2014-2020: https://gov.wales/funding/eu-funds/2014-2020/approved-projects/?lang=en2007-2013: https://gov.wales/funding/eu-funds/previous/searchprojects1/?lang=en

Ministry of Justice

Offenders: Housing Benefit

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on people on remand of the reduction under universal credit in the period for which they can claim housing benefit from 12 to six months; and if he will make a statement.

Rory Stewart: There are no current assessments either by the Ministry of Justice or the Department for Work and Pensions. We recognise that having somewhere stable to live on release from prison can be a critical factor in supporting rehabilitation and reducing homelessness, and this is particularly acute for short-sentenced offenders. This is why Universal Credit continues to pay housing support for up to 6 months to support those benefit recipients who are imprisoned, whether on remand and/or sentenced.

Courts: Video Conferencing

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of defendants have appeared in court proceedings via video link in each year since 2013.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 24 July 2018 to Question 164973 on Courts: Video Conferencing, what information HMCTS holds on witnesses who have appeared in court proceedings via video link in each year since 2013.

Lucy Frazer: The number of defendants appearing by video link, for the period requested, is set out by year in the table below. YearTotal Defendants via Video Link201359,371201480,284201591,489201686,518201787,789We are unable to calculate what proportion of defendants appear in court via video link, as HMCTS does not record the total number of defendants who appear in court each year.The data is based on a manual return for Magistrates' and Crown Courts.Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale manual recording system.Data is management information and is not subject to the same level of checks as official statistics.Figures shown are for the number of defendants recorded as using video link from a prison or police station for a trial or hearing in the Magistrates’ and Crown Court. A single defendant is recorded only once.HMCTS records the number of Magistrates’ and Crown court trials where a video link is used for witnesses and that data is set out in the table below. A single trial may make multiple use of the video link for different witnesses but will only be recorded once.YearTotal No of trials/hearings with Witness(s) via Video link20138,24620149,023201510,733201610,373201711,046The data are based on a manual return from Magistrates' and Crown Courts.Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale manual recording system.Data are management information and are not subject to the same level of checks as official statistics.A single trial or hearing may make multiple use of the video link but will be recorded only once.

Electronic Cigarettes

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted for selling e-cigarettes to people aged under 18 in the last three years.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Antisemitism: Prosecutions

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of people who have been prosecuted for anti-semitic hate crime in each of the last three years.

Lucy Frazer: Prosecutions data held by the department record information against offences defined in law. The law does not define an offence specifically of anti-Semitic hate crime, so the requested information is not held. Figures for whether Anti-Semitism was a motivation of other offences that have been prosecuted is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Forensic Science: Misconduct

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the National Police Chiefs' Council's press release National operation to retest manipulated forensic samples is progressing at pace, published on 21 November 2018, how many of the 10,000 cases identified by the National Police Chiefs' Council as possibly being affected by manipulation at Randox Testing Services were discovered to have been manipulated following testing; and which categories of offences those cases related to.

Lucy Frazer: The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) press release referred to in this Parliamentary Question was published on 21 November 2017, not 2018. This issue remains the subject of an ongoing police investigation to determine how many cases may have been manipulated.

Cohabitation

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department is taking steps to introduce legislative proposals to enable cohabiting couples to share financial and property rights; and if he will make a statement.

Lucy Frazer: The Government’s current priorities are to reform the law on the process for obtaining a divorce in order to reduce family conflict and to extend civil partnerships to opposite sex couples. The Government will be considering how to proceed in relation to proposals made by the Law Commission in the context of any further reforms to the family justice system.

Cabinet Office

Infrastructure: Cybercrime

Jo Platt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans are in place to ensure that operators of critical national infrastructure are resourced with (a) an adequate number of and (b) adequately skilled employees to protect against cyber threats.

Mr David Lidington: Developing a sustainable pipeline of cyber security talent to protect the UK’s Critical National Infrastructure is a priority for the government.Our approach under the National Security Strategy 2016-2021 looks at the full skills pipeline, from schools and universities, apprenticeships and continuing professional development, to targeted interventions to retrain our existing workforce so we can deliver a step-change in the UK’s cyber security capabilities. The government will set out further details in the forthcoming National Cyber Security Skills Strategy.

Domestic Violence

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of incidents of domestic violence in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) the UK in each year since 2010.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA response 
(PDF Document, 66.73 KB)

Interserve

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Crown Commercial Service is involved in the discussions on Interserve's proposed deleveraging plan, set to be announced in early 2019.

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Crown Commercial Service has made an assessment of the potential cost to the public purse of the collapse of Interserve.

Oliver Dowden: The Government continually monitors the financial health of its strategic suppliers and has appropriate plans in place in relation to the risk of those companies. These plans are commercially sensitive and confidential. We do not believe that any strategic supplier is in a similar situation to Carillion. The company’s current intentions are a matter for the company itself.

Interserve

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many meetings the Crown Commercial Service have had with Interserve in the last six months.

Oliver Dowden: Crown Commercial Service holds quarterly meetings with the company as part of a regular governance process for framework suppliers. In addition to regular CCS and departmental (or contract authority) meetings, the Cabinet Office Markets and Suppliers team meets regularly with all the strategic suppliers as part of their supplier relationship management programme.

Interserve

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the current risk designation is Interserve; and whether that designation has changed in the last 12 months.

Oliver Dowden: As set out in the Strategic Supplier Risk Management Policy, supplier risk ratings are not published by Government.

Interserve

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Crown Commercial Service has issued advice to (a) public and (b) third sector organisations that are entering into procurement contracts with Interserve on the financial health of that company.

Oliver Dowden: It is the responsibility of contracting authorities to carry out appropriate due diligence checks on potential suppliers when they are contracting out, to ensure that those suppliers are able to deliver the public services for which they are contracted. The Strategic Supplier Risk Management Policy is not of itself relevant to the conduct of procurement activities. If contracting authorities approach Cabinet Office to request advice on their procurements, however, Cabinet Office provides whatever assistance they are able to. As set out in the Strategic Supplier Risk Management Policy, supplier risk ratings are not published by Government, but performance related and financial information is made available to in-scope organisations on request

Honours and Privy Council

Layla Moran: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what (a) discussions he held and (b) advice he sought from Honours committees in advance of the (i) knighthood and (ii) Privy Council appointments announced by his office on 23 November 2018.

Mr David Lidington: The Prime Minister made an honours recommendation to Her Majesty The Queen, following the completion of full probity checks, and in recognition of exceptional and longstanding Government service. Privy Councillors are members of The Queen's own Council and are not part of the honours process.

House of Commons Commission

Bullying and Harassment of House of Commons Staff Independent Inquiry

Justin Madders: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, pursuant to the oral contribution of 05 November 2018, Official Report column 1281, how many individuals with complaints prior to July 2017 have come forward.

Tom Brake: Holding answer received on 23 November 2018



The Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme helplines provide the House of Commons with information about the volume of calls received and the Independent Investigation Service holds information about the number of formal complaints pursued. This information does not include whether the behaviours complained about pre- or post-date July 2017, although callers are advised that only complaints about incidents later than this date can currently be upheld under the Scheme.

House of Commons: Recruitment

Layla Moran: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much the House of Commons spent on (a) headhunters and (b) recruitment agencies in each year since 2009.

Tom Brake: The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.